The Crew: Reenacted
by Avalain Nightshade
Summary: (Novel) Angelica Claire stumbles upon the dwelling of the Mario Crew and soon finds herself wrapped in their lifestyle full of partying, battling, and friendships. There is, however, a threat from within the Crew.. and another from without. Even though Angel has just found paradise, she and the Crew must discover what plots lurk in the unforeseen shadows, plots the Ztars have made
1. Prologue

Far away, in a universe unknown to many, two figures floated in a paradise known as the Heavens, where all Stars and Light beings lived. These figures did not seem to be out of place, but indeed they were, discussing important matters in hushed tones as the others of the Heavens rushed around, minding their daily lives.

"Are you sure?" asked the first, glancing at the second dubiously. The suspicion in her tone was identifiable.

"Starlow," replied the second, "I've never been more sure of anything in this lifetime."

The first, Starlow, responded, "How can you be absolutely certain, Master? You know the consequences if we are wrong—the stakes are dire. Do not play this game, Your Majesty. It is far too risky."

The Master sighed. He, despite being the ruler of a very fine and bright kingdom, did not enjoy formalities. But ignoring this, said he, "Please, my advisor. As I have trusted in you, you must now trust in _me._ She is the one, and she shall change everything. For better or worse is to be seen, but we may yet stand a chance."

"This could also be our destruction. Your father knows about this gamble. I pray to you, leave her fate be. She has no business with us—I bet the others would agree."

"There would be one who would not," the Master hummed serenely.

Starlow scoffed and narrowed her eyes. "There is only one who would agree, First Star. And just because he—"

But First Star, as he was so admiringly called, interrupted.

"Starlow. I will not debate with you any longer. I will not intervene—not yet. But I will watch her. The others will watch her. We shall see what she does. Don't let anyone speak to her, she is only a baby now. But as she grows, I will oversee what she knows and believes. If we need her, I will attempt to direct her towards us. Are we agreed?"

The smaller figure stared at First Star, who sounded so firm that she almost believed him. As she stared at her leader for any sign of doubt, Starlow could not help but realize how set First Star was on his decision, gamble or no.

"Indeed we are."

"Good," rumbled he, "As I said, Starlow, leave her be. Later, perhaps, we shall attempt to communicate… if the Ztars will allow us to, at any rate."

He turned back to the image he had summoned. The picture was of a sleeping baby girl in her mother's arms… she was far away, but nonetheless she had captured the attention of First Star on the moment of her birth.

Starlow watched her Master somberly float away. Her own eyes grew solemn as his glow dimmed. Then, turning back to the mirage of the girl, she whispered, "I hope First Star is right, Angelica. I hope you will be able to… do what no one else could. Please aid us in changing our fortunes in this war."

And she followed First Star to his castle.


	2. Chapter 1

In a harbor stood a mildly confused girl. Yet she could no longer be called a girl, as she was bound to turn twenty-two on June 30th.

She turned around, gazing at the people around her. They budged past without a second glance, none of them offering help, which she was desperately seeking. The girl dared to think she was lost, but then she scoffed and shoved the thought.

The girl's name was Angelica Claire. She, however, preferred to be called Angel. There was nothing peculiar about her on sight—she possessed stubborn brown hair, her eyes were the color of dark chocolate, and she wore a purple tank top, a white sweater, and jean capris. As usual, she had her diamond earrings on along with her favorite pair of wedges.

But Angelica Claire was not normal. Inexplicable things happened to her. From the ages of seven to thirteen, she had dreamt of the strangest people. She had never been able to clearly see their faces, for a bright light omitted their identities. Nor did she know their names; but still they had become her companions. She was devastated the day she turned thirteen, the day they told her they wouldn't be coming back.

Then there were the voices, and they weren't just her consciousness. They'd given her advice when she was troubled, and they voiced their opinions on decisions she made. But they also declared that they must leave, and they disappeared the day she turned thirteen as well.

Angel had a wispy feeling they were the same people from her dreams.

But despite saying they must depart, one of the voices stayed. Though he—she decided it must have been a he—had said he wouldn't be coming back, he did. He often stole short visits to talk to her, and he grew to be one of her friends. She had been so glad when he returned, even if it hadn't been for long… until the day she woke up to a very final goodbye.

Angel walked down the harbor, careful not to run into anybody. She also wasn't the most coordinated being on the planet.

The date was May 21st. This was the day Angel was supposed to embark on a six-month cruise around the Caribbean. Lucky chance had stumbled upon her one day in the early winter when she'd purchased lottery tickets for her family. Her own ticket rewarded her with the top prize, though she'd never heard of a cruise as a prize before. Nevertheless, all her friends and family pestered her into going, saying that after the last three extremely tough years, she deserved a break.

Finally, she had agreed.

Angel turned a full circle. At this point she was rather certain she'd need a guide to lead her where she wanted to go.

In a last effort to find where she was, Angel checked her ticket.

Ticket 01692

Dock A-12, Board at 2:00 PM on May 21st, 2019

Thanks for cruising with us!

She stared at it as if it were an invaluable heirloom that she'd never been allowed to hold before. It still seemed unreal, as if it were another of her dreams.

When she looked up again, Angel remained confused—she looked at all the docks and did not see any labeled A-12. She whirled around. A-11 and A-13 hung over her head. Perhaps the evens were on the other side of the harbor? She couldn't stand the thought.

Closing her eyes and trying not to panic, she thought, _Think for a second. A-10 is on the other side of A-11. That must mean your dock is nearby. There's no sensible explanation for why A-12 would be far away._

Slightly comforted, she opened her eyes to see a red wooden sign reading A-12 straight in front of her. Shocked, she thought about asking someone how she missed it before realizing that would be ridiculous. She must've overlooked it somehow.

Tip-toeing towards the sign, Angel blinked to make sure it was not a mirage or an illusion of some sort. Pleased that it did **_not_**disappear, she checked her phone.

It was fifteen minutes before boarding time.

Shrugging, she decided to wait. But that didn't last long for excitement.

Trying to be patient, she gazed at the ship before her. When she saw it, she couldn't believe her eyes—but there it was in front of her.

The cruise ship Angel was to board was white with bright, vivid stripes like pink and yellow and green on it. There were colors of the rainbow, the sky, and the water all mixed into one design. On the helm of the ship, a golden star with two black eyes reigned, guiding the ship towards its next destination. The star reflected the sunlight, making it glow. The ship had many levels; at least three, and probably with a cargo hold.

_The colors really make this ship stand out over all the others. The others are all black and white, _she thought, surprised about this ship's particular pattern.

She almost absentmindedly began to board, her legs carrying her forward as her eyes feasted on the vibrant colors of the ship. Before long, Angel was on the main deck.

The creamy walls were spotless, as if the wallpaper was brand new. The floor was made of wood instead of metal, which complimented the walls. There were multiple corridors Angel could take to explore more areas—she couldn't decide which path to take.

Before she could make a decision, however, she felt a sudden lurch. Her legs slipped out from underneath her and she fell, the pain intensified from having been caught off-guard. On the floor of the ship, she watched, dismayed and speechless, as the ship sailed out onto the blue ocean.

For a moment, she couldn't say anything for surprise. But once her wits were gathered, Angel shouldered her bag and said plainly, "This isn't good."

She dared herself to check her watch—it was ten minutes before two. The poor girl sighed and turned around, thinking that perhaps she could still swim to shore.

"What?" she asked herself, slowly rising to her feet. Another nasty shock overtook her. Blue-green water completely surrounded the ship. In only one minute, the outlines of the harbor, the other ships, and even the **_country_**_, _had disappeared. Though the golden sun shone warmly down on her, the looming fact that she boarded the wrong ship did not recede.

_Strange,_ she thought. After her initial hesitation, said she aloud and uncertainly, "Now that I'm here, I might as well find out where I am."

She moved away from the main deck, taking in the unusual design of the ship. She tried to ignore the fact that she had no idea where she was headed.

After ten minutes, there was no sign of anyone residing on the ship. Angel grew afraid of the possibility that the ship was deserted after all… but that was impossible, she thought. Ships did not move on their own.

_It cannot be a ghost ship. The supernatural is supernatural. It's impossible—there's no such thing. There must be someone operating this thing._

But Angel, of course, fully believed in the supernatural. How could she not, with all that had happened during her lifetime?

While trying to convince herself that someone had to be nearby, Angel suddenly heard two different voices. Relief swallowed her, and she let her ear direct her to the two speakers. Soon, she caught up to them.

The first person was a woman. She looked elegant and refined with blonde hair the color of the sun. She possessed sky blue eyes that seemed to understand anything and everything. Her pale pink lips were parted in surprise. She wore a long, rosy dress with short sleeves and magenta lace at the hem. The lace was the same color as her heels. She also wore long, white gloves, and atop her head sat a golden crown bejeweled with rubies and sapphires.

The second person was a man. His blue eyes seemed friendly, and his hair was brown. Along with his brown hair, the man had a brown mustache. The man's outfit consisted of blue overalls over a red shirt, and he also wore white gloves that cut off at the wrist, brown boots upon his feet. The man had a red hat with a red "M" inside of a white circle. He seemed intelligent like the woman, but wary once he saw Angel watching them.

For a silent moment, the three of them watched each other. No one moved nor said nor did anything as they appraised one another. Angel noted that it was as if the man and woman had never seen any other humans like **_her _**before.

The strange couple glanced at each other and seemed to have a discussion through expression. Again, the lady gazed strangely at Angel, who was finding it difficult to hide her shock at seeing them. Realizing that Angelica meant no harm, however, the lady put on a timid smile, which was hesitantly returned.

The atmosphere of wariness dissolved after that. At once, all sighed, but their gazes still held a great amount of curiosity.

Glancing at the man before speaking, the woman began quietly, "Hello. I really hate to go straight to questions, but might you tell us how you got here?"

Angel stared back at her for a moment. "I don't know, exactly, but I can tell you why I didn't leave. The outline of the city disappeared. Before, I'd been thinking I could swim to shore, but after seeing how distant we'd already come…"

Once more, the two of them exchanged swift glances, nodding towards Angel a little. Meanwhile, she continued peering at them strangely; something about them was bugging her. Not the, _"Oh-no-I-just-boarded-the-wrong-ship-and-got-stranded-here-because-Florda-disappeared"_ kind of bug, but a different kind. No matter how hard she tried to place it, the answer shrank away until Angel couldn't remember she was bothered in the first place.

Finally, since the silence was unnerving her, Angel added, "I'd leave if I could, but there's nowhere to go! I'm sorry to budge in on you like this," said she as an afterthought, just to be safe.

Her worries dissolved as the man smiled warmly and replied, "Oh, no, we're sorry you had to go through this! We don't control this boat, though. That would be the staff."

The woman nodded in agreement. Still watching Angel, she asked, "What is your name, if I might ask?"

Answered she a little cautiously, "My name is Angelica Claire… Angel for short."

The woman smiled tranquilly and answered, "That's a pretty name."

Angel was about to say thank you when the lady clapped her hands, her face morphing into something like horror. "Oh, we haven't even told you **_our_**names! Oh, Toadsworth would be mortified… anyway, my name is Peach. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Her smile was inviting again as Angel came forward and shook her hand. Though Angel still wasn't quite sure what to make of all this yet, she figured it was all right so far. Next, the man stepped forward and grinned. "It is nice to meet you—my name is Mario."

As she shook his hand, Angel wondered if the situation was going to be as bad as she originally had made it out to be. Her fear diminished when she saw how friendly these Peach and Mario characters were—but there was still a nagging feeling inside her. Then she realized why. There was a question she wanted answered.

"Thank you for listening to me, Peach, Mario," began Angel slowly. "But I have to ask you something."

Mario waved his hand. "Fire away."

"How could we have gotten so far away in such little time? Does this ship have some sort of superpower? "

Peach gave Mario a fleeting smile before vaguely answering, "In a way." Angel observed their expressions before accepting that answer—though she could see it was correct, there was obviously more they weren't telling her just yet.

And they were perfectly in their rights to do it, Angel thought. It was their place she had stumbled upon, of course.

The two people clearly saw her confusion. Trying to amend their mistake, they smiled and added, "It's a long story, Angel. Given all that's happened today, you may want to wait a little before we tell you."

Angel, however, gave them a wry smile. Peach and Mario watched her with piquing interest as she challenged, "Try me."

Their smiles grew as she said this. They were beginning to approve of Angel. Mario was the first to speak. "What would you say if I told you it was magic?"

To their immense astonishment, Angel grinned. She was thinking about how magic could explain so much, like the voices and dreams she'd once had. All that could trace back to that one word. And so she replied, "I can swallow that. It's the reason I couldn't swim back to shore… and the answer to so many other things."

"Indeed," Mario responded, slowly nodding.

"We use magic all the time," Peach explained. "You're in a whole different world now because of it. Magic is a powerful thing. We depend on it for many different things, including food. We must travel to your Earth every six months to obtain more."

"So that is how I will get home in six months?" Angel asked, piecing this information together.

They nodded, pleased with how quickly she was catching on.

Angel too was content with her sudden burst of intellect. She couldn't help but give a justified smile as she asked the last question that was currently on her mind. "So… am I just…"

"Staying here? Of course," Peach immediately answered, clapping in excitement. The corners of her mouth formed a grin.

There was a silence until Mario said, "I know this is a lot to wrap your head around—"

Angel laughed quietly to herself.

"But I think, despite what's gone on here, that you'd like to meet the rest of us?" he finished, raising an eyebrow. "Would you like to meet them?"

Surprised, the girl questioned, "There are more of you?"

They gave her a cryptic answer by the way they smiled. Then Peach said, "Now, before we leave, we may have to warn you that not everyone is... human. There are many different forms of people—not everyone is a human like on Earth."

Mario nodded at her appreciatively and added, "There are all sorts of us here. Though we're more or less human, there are a couple of other creatures like ghosts or dinosaurs. Not full size, luckily," he amended swiftly at the impressed yet slightly intimidated look on Angel's face. "So don't worry—they'll grow to like you."

A little unsure, Angel decided that if she were stranded on a strange ghostly cruise ship for six months, she might as well make nice with the people who'd arrived first. Her lips curved into a sideways grin. "I understand completely. Thank you. And I think I will get used to it immediately. I've had many a surprise in my lifetime."

"Well, come on, then!" Peach exclaimed, waving Angel forward. "Let's go to the dining hall. There's always somebody there—Head Chef could whip up something for us, too."

Angel took Peach's and Mario's outstretched hands, but questions continued frazzling her brain. Curiosity, suspicion, and excitement all piled up, making her head hurt. Though Angel knew that technically none of this should've been possible, she knew deep inside that she'd never looked hard enough for the traces of magic that had been in her life.

_I wonder who else is here besides Peach and Mario… _she thought. And although Angelica Claire was confused, she was admittedly excited as well.

Through the creamy white halls the trio walked until—"Here we are, the dining hall!"

Peach ushered Angel inside, Mario following. Though the two of them found nothing peculiar with the scene, the new girl was quite perplexed by what was in front of her.

In the dining hall, Angel noticed three long, wooden tables. They were a darker color than the benches she had seen earlier; beside the tables were more benches long enough to seat six or seven people on one side. There were three buffet lines which were filled with fruit and crackers. There were two doorways: the one she, Mario, and Peach had just entered from, and the doorway to what was undoubtedly the kitchen, based on all of the clanging made from pots and pans.

As Angel looked around the room, she noticed five people sitting at one of the tables. The group consisted of two strange men, one white flying ghost, one very pink mushroom, and one very green dinosaur. She realized with a satisfied smile that Peach had not been lying to her earlier.

The five peoples were having a conversation—or perhaps an argument. The two men had scowls on their faces, and the green dinosaur was looking aggravated, his fingers tapping loudly on the table. The pink mushroom was toying with her hair, and the ghost was floating around, scowling like the two men.

"Man, this is boring," one man groaned. "When's the next Party?"

"I don't know," the other man replied, waving his hand randomly. But the light seemed different than before… Angel looked up.

The ceiling was no longer bright white, but it was a dark, navy blue as if to mirror the night sky. There were minuscule white dots on the magic ceiling to represent stars, and she gaped when she saw it.

Again, the man waved his hand, and the night sky now became a galaxy, with stars closer than Angel ever dreamed possible. Suns were bright and warm; the light in the room was nothing short of blinding. There was a strange glow in the very back of the image that captivated her… but then the ceiling reverted to white in response to the third wave of the man's hand.

"It better be soon," the second man sighed, twirling his thin black mustache with his finger. Angel could see that the white ghost was looking thoughtful, as if scheming on how to get the man to poke himself in the eye.

To make their presence known, Mario announced casually, "Hey, guys."

"Oh, good! Party time!" the first man shouted, jumping up. But then he saw Angel, and his look of eagerness morphed into one of curiosity.

He was short and stout with a stringy black mustache and hard, black eyes. They were cold and uninviting, but they warmed up ever so slightly as they landed on the confused girl. His nose was somewhat pink, like it had been sunburned, and something about his sneaky smile made Angel think that he was not someone to mess around with. He wore purple overalls over a yellow shirt and white gloves that cut off at his wrists. His boots were a dull orange, and instead of a red hat, his hat was yellow with a purple "W."

Angel and that man studied each other for a moment before he asked bluntly, "Who's she?"

"This is Angel," Peach introduced, glaring at the man. "Obviously, she's new here."

"So I see," he responded coolly, returning the look. "My name is Wario, nice of you to drop in," he added as an afterthought, directing that last to Angel.

She said nothing and only smiled, wondering if he was sincere or not. Something about the man was sketchy, but then again, the whole situation she was in was rather awkward.

_I think he means it, _she finally answered herself.

To confirm her suspicions, the pink mushroom gal piped up cheerily. "He's being sincere. Or at least, he **_better_** be being serious," she added on as a warning, glancing at Wario. "It's so nice to meet ya! If there's any way I can help, just tell me. I'd always be happy to help."

"Thank you, but now that I know all of you are here, it makes me feel much better," Angel told her.

"Yeah, well, there aren't too many of us, but that's okay with me. It's nice to meet you, Angel. My name is Waluigi," the second man said.

Waluigi was a tall, thin man. He had black hair and mysterious, unreadable eyes. They seemed sneaky—cheating in a way. Angel knew that if Waluigi ever wanted to hide something, he could do so easily. Along with his eyes and hair, Waluigi also had a black, stringy mustache like Wario. His outfit was a black pair of overalls over a purple shirt, white gloves that cut off at the wrist, dull orange boots, and a purple hat with an upside-down "L."

_Hm. More opposites. _

Angel gave Waluigi one of the pretty smiles she was known for at home and shook his hand. Soon, she was introduced to the other three sitting at the table. The third person she met in the dining hall was the white, flying ghost.

The ghost had menacing black eyes inside a frightening face. He had stubby white arms and a slightly upturned tail. He was cute, to some degree, but scary in another. The ghost also had a pink mouth where a row of sharp white teeth lodged. What Angel found surprising was that the ghost did not speak proper English—yet somehow, she could understand him.

"My name is Boo. It is nice to meet you," said Boo in a raspy voice. He smiled in an ominous, creepy way that made Angel wonder if he **_ever _**stopped smiling.

The next person to be introduced was the green dinosaur. The dinosaur had a white belly, chin and puffy cheeks. The dino had red scales on the back of his neck that continued down onto his back that then led down to his green, curved tail. He only wore shiny golden-brown boots that he seemed to treasure very much. His eyes were black, but they were very friendly. Angel guessed that no one ever quarreled with him—he was too cute. The dinosaur didn't speak proper English, but like Boo, Angel could understand what he was saying.

"Yoshi. Yoshi!" he called out merrily, which Angel translated as, "Hi! My name is Yoshi! You seem pretty cool, hope you enjoy this place!"

She was surprised he could get all that out in only two choruses of, "Yoshi!"

The last person to be introduced was the pink mushroom, who spoke English. At first glance, she thought Toadette was quite energetic.

"Hi, my name's Toadette, and it is totally amazing to meetcha!"

Toadette was a very short pink mushroom; on her mushroom head were white polka-dots. Attached to her head were two pink braids, one on each side. Toadette had friendly eyes inside of a smiling face. Her teeth were white when she grinned, and Angel knew at once that Toadette was an optimist. Toadette wore a peach-colored shirt and a rosy-colored skirt, which looked quite adorable because the outfit matched her pink head and braids. She was very bubbly—it wasn't hard to tell that much.

Once Angel had met everyone in the dining hall, she socialized for a little while, particularly with Toadette because she seemed so interested in becoming friends with her. Toadette kept asking questions about how Angel liked it here, what she thought, etc. Angel thought Toadette was full of undying life.

Many a time Angelica was tempted to get straight to the point and ask the question that had bugged her earlier—she'd finally remembered it. The question was about the people in her dreams. If her new friends had magic, surely they could trace these people! But Toadette was so sweet and obsessed in welcoming her, Angel decided to put that aside. The others were very kind—to some degree in Wario's and Waluigi's cases—which only made Angel feel guilty in thinking about directly confronting them with her question.

But after a time, Wario suggested, "Why don't you guys head to the Star Pad? There's always someone there."

"Yes, just like there's always someone here!" giggled Toadette.

Confused, asked Angel, "What's the Star Pad?"

Smiling as always, said Boo, "It's the hang out of the ship. The view from there is the best on the whole boat—especially for the sunset. But there are other purposes we use it for, too, not just as a scenic spot."

Angel nodded, wondering what the view was like. The sunset over a calm, sparkling, blue-green ocean… she could live with that for six months.

"Alright then, let's head to the Star Pad," Mario said, directing Angel towards the exit. The five new friends she'd made decided that they wanted to go with them instead of sit around, so they followed.

After a couple minutes of walking, Peach said, "Okay, we're coming up to the Star Pad, and there should be somebody here..."

When the Star Pad came into view, Angel noticed that five more people were hanging out. There was a fourth man, a second woman, a pink dinosaur, a gray turtle, and a guy mushroom.

"Hey, people. What's up?" asked Waluigi informally, sauntering up and using the gray turtle as an armrest. The gray turtle didn't seem to like that, because he tilted his head up, mouth open as if to bite Waluigi. But before he could, Waluigi danced out of the turtle's reach, leaving his jaws snapping on air.

Their antics over, the pink dinosaur refocused on the question she'd been asked. "Not much, just sitting around. Are we going to Party soon?" Then she saw Angel and exclaimed, "Ooh! New arrival!"

"Yes," Mario said, "her name is Angel. She just met Peach, Wario, Waluigi, Boo, Yoshi, Toadette and I. She's had a pretty rough day."

"Why, what happened?" the woman asked. Everyone at the Star Pad looked genuinely interested and concerned.

For the third time that day, Angel told her story. And for the third time that day, the kindhearted people listened with concern, taking in the facts and the surprises she had gone less than thirty minutes past, yet felt like forever ago.

When Angel finished, there was a silence. But then, the woman said, "Oh, dear! Well, you can just think of us as your friends for the next six months. You'll have a lot of fun here. My name is Daisy."

Daisy extended her hand and Angel shook it with a smile.

Princess Daisy was beautiful like Peach, though not as regal. Daisy had an air of freedom around her instead of an air of duty and understanding like Peach. Her carelessness was shown in her fun-filled blue eyes. Daisy's hair was the color of cinnamon and grew just past her shoulders. She had on a yellow dress with two ruffles of yellow-orange lace on the hem, and her high heels were of the same color. Daisy's white gloves cut off at her wrist, and like Peach, atop of Daisy's head sat a gold crown adorned with amethysts and rubies.

Angel soon learned that the mushroom's name was Toad. Toad's white head was covered in red polka-dots. He had fun, free eyes also inside of a smiling face. Toad wore a blue shirt with tan pants. Angel had to keep from smiling, because she knew at once that the two of them were together. Both seemed like the happy-go-lucky type of people who wouldn't be caught dead frowning.

Next to be introduced was the gray turtle. Through a series of clicks and clacks, Angel understood that his name was Dry Bones. True to his name, Dry Bones was entirely made out of gray bones. Dry Bones said, "Yep, I know. I'm weird. But don't misjudge—just because I'm all bone doesn't mean I don't have a brain. Take a good look at those two over there," Dry Bones gestured to Wario and Waluigi. "If you combine those two together and gave them a brain, they'd have **_one._**"

That didn't seem to sit well with Wario and Waluigi.

The pink dinosaur came next. "Hi, my name's Birdo!" Birdo had a large pink bow in between her ears and a large diamond ring on her index finger—a glittering treasure she seemed to guard with her life. Her eyes were a color in between chocolate and lavender, and her eyes were cheerful, yet somewhat wary. Angel got the feeling that Birdo would do whatever it took to protect her friends.

Lastly, the man shook Angel's hand and said, "Pleasure to meet you, Angel. My name is Luigi." Luigi looked strikingly similar to Mario: same hair color, eye color and mustache. Luigi's eyes were different than Mario's, however; Luigi's eyes were filled with a certain carelessness. Instead of red, green was the main color on his outfit. He wore blue overalls over a green shirt, had the same white gloves and brown boots as everyone else, and his hat was green. On his hat was the right-side up "L" instead of an "M," "W," or an upside-down "L."

It struck Angel that Mario and Luigi **_had_** to be brothers. Everything about them was the same except for their colors and their attitudes. And Luigi was just a little taller than Mario was.

Even more of a surprise was that Wario and Waluigi had to be brothers. Their faces held the same type of attitude and the same color eyes, hair, and mustaches. Even if their physical looks were very different, their senses of humor and their attitudes were somewhat the same.

_Oh, I __**so **__called that "opposites" thing, _Angel thought smugly. She smiled for real as she spoke to those she'd just met—Birdo and Luigi in particular. _I wonder what the relationship between Wario and Mario and Luigi and Waluigi is. That ought to be interesting…_

After a few more minutes of talking with everyone, Daisy declared, "Well, now we have a reason to Party! Since you've met everyone on the ship except for the cruise staff, Angel, I think we should show you what we're famous for."

As one, everyone shouted, "Let's Party!"


	3. Chapter 2

The whole Crew seemed excited with these words, and many of them rushed off to the opposite end of the deck. Only a couple stayed with Angel—Boo and Luigi remained, hoping to get to know the new recruit better.  
>Angel was amused by the excited reactions of the others. "I'm guessing these Parties are great sources of entertainment?"<br>Boo scoffed and exclaimed, "They're amazing," dreamily, leaving Angel laughing. "Oh—that reminds me…" added he quickly. Boo snapped his fingers and a piece of paper appeared, floating suspended in midair.  
>"Okay, that's pretty cool," she said, pointing at the paper. "If that's what you guys can do, serious respect."<br>Luigi smiled, taking the conjured list and handing it to her. "I'm not sure what you'll want to do—either play or watch—but either way, I think you might want to know the basics." Angel took it and found things she didn't understand listed on the sheet.

Blue Space = Gain 3 Coins Red Space = Lose 3 Coins ? Space = Special Event Occurs (Depending on the Board)  
>Mushroom Space = Gain One Mushroom Bomb-omb Space = Battle Game DK Space = DK Appears Dragon Face Space = Bowser Appears Multi-Colored Star Space = Fortune Space Eighth Note Space = Lucky Space (Be sent straight to the Star)<p>

"I think that's it," Boo said as he checked the list.  
>"No, there's the Duel Space," hummed Luigi. "You forgot that one, as usual."<br>Boo gave Luigi a face and added on the last space.

Crossing Swords Space = Duel Space

"Okay, now that's it," Boo said, obviously hoping he was right. Seeing that Luigi didn't contradict him, he stuck his tongue out and pouted, causing for Angel to laugh again. Scanning the list, she asked, "What are DK and Bowser?"  
>Peering at the list as well, responded Luigi, "A DK space means a good activity will occur. The opposite goes for Bowser."<br>Angel nodded and continued reading. Then she asked another question she thought was basic level for these people. "What's a bomb-omb?"  
>As soon as the words escaped her mouth, Boo and Luigi burst out laughing. Angel watched apprehensively, wondering plaintively if she really had just asked a moronic question. But seeing her expression, Luigi exclaimed quickly, "No, no, we weren't laughing at you. We were remembering what happened to Wario the last time he saw a bomb-omb."<br>"Yes, and don't you dare tell her!" shouted Wario from the opposite side of the deck.  
>Feeling better, Angel smiled again. "But what are they, exactly?"<br>Boo gave a curt nod and grinned, saying, "Little packs of dynamite who follow you around and blow us up as often as they can. They walk around on their own legs… They're a tad cute until they blow you to the other side of the moon. Boy, I wish I could tell you what happened to Wario the last time he—"  
>Laughing, interrupted Luigi, "Don't. He'll hurt all of us for laughing at him."<br>"Yeah, that's true," replied Boo wistfully. But regaining his constant creepy smile, he added, "But then again… I'm transparent…"  
>"But we aren't," said Luigi, shaking his head and resisting the urge to smile. Angel gave him a look that stated rather than asked; Boo and Wario don't like each other. He nodded.<br>Boo sighed and muttered, "Darn, that's right. You guys should cross over to my side just so you won't have to feel Wario's fists… It's a luxury provided only to the best, I suppose."  
>Angel laughed once more and replied, "I suppose it is," before Luigi could argue otherwise. Satisfied, Boo wiggled his eyebrows and performed a little celebratory float in midair. Just then Toadette excitedly bounded over.<br>"It's going to be twenty turns long with no handicaps and the board will be Sweet Dream," Toadette explained in a blur and without breath, a wild and bouncy look about her person. "Well, what kind of Party is it?" Luigi asked patiently. Obviously, thought Angel, he was used to this. She could see the contained look in his eyes when he looked back at her.  
>Toadette looked at him indignantly and, attempting to recapture Luigi's attention, huffed, "A Super Party, of course. It wouldn't be fair if it was just a Regular Party." "Hey, it could be a Super Deluxe Party," Luigi began, but he was interrupted by Boo, who shouted, "People! You're confusing the newbie!"<br>Angel flushed, closing her open mouth. "It is confusing—you didn't tell me about kinds of Parties… and you didn't really tell me what they are or what purpose they serve…"  
>"Purpose?" Luigi asked, looking at her sideways, "We do it for fun. It doesn't really need any other purpose, does it? And as for what they actually are—"<br>"Just a fun little game we play," Toadette exclaimed giddily as Boo proclaimed darkly, "IT'S A FIGHT TO THE DEATH!"  
>Glancing between them, Angel pointed at Toadette and murmured, "I'm going to stick with your theory…"<br>"Ha-ha!" Toadette bragged, sticking her tongue out as Boo glared at her malevolently. But regaining his composure, he grinned creepily at Angel. "Wrong choice." He cleared his throat and proceeded to explain; "See, a Super Party is where everyone plays, but it's every ghost for himself. A Regular Party has the same concept, but there are only four people that play. A Deluxe Party is where eight people pair up in groups of two, and a Super Deluxe Party is where everyone pairs up in teams of two." He wiggled his eyebrows again seeing Angel's look of enlightenment.  
>But far from being satisfied, Toadette sighed haughtily and contradicted, "You forgot one as usual, pea-brain."<br>Shooting her a dark glare, Boo added, "And a Battle Party is where four people team up in two groups of two. Now be-gone, woman, you're defiling my sexy ghost mojo!"  
>"What 'sexy ghost mojo?'" Luigi muttered under his breath, causing Angel to stifle laughter as Boo childishly stuck out his tongue.<br>Looking over Toadette's pink head, Angel noticed a strange shape appearing in front of the boat. As she watched, the gray blob obtained a more definite shape until she realized that it was an island.  
>"That's Sweet Dream Island," Luigi told her, "that's where we'll be having our Party. Do you want to play or watch?"<br>"Watch. Definitely watch," said Angel without hesitation.  
>Luigi and Toadette laughed as Boo said, "In that case, you can sit on a cloud and watch. Hehehe... in Sweet Dream Island, the clouds are made out of cotton candy..." Angel giggled. "Thanks, I'll do my best to keep up with the game."<br>"Good," Boo exhaled dreamily, "Bring me a huge wad of a fluffy pink cloud."

In no time at all, Angel found herself seated high above the play area on a particularly puffy blue cloud. It was quite sticky, and she had been forced to stifle a laugh upon realizing her newfound friends were not joking—the clouds really were cotton candy.  
>As she looked around, she couldn't get rid of her shock. The whole board was made out of desserts. She giggled as Boo swiped some chocolate icing off of the cupcake he was standing on—to her amazement, the icing was immediately replenished. She then laughed as Toad ate a piece of key lime pie and, for her entertainment, chucked it at the back of Wario's head. Again, the apple pie instantly grew back. There was not an inch not made out of desserts such as chocolate cakes, apple pies, cheesecakes, cookies, cotton candy clouds, and other desserts Angel had never even knew existed.<br>Glancing around with disbelief, she found herself asking, "How do they make such a sight?" Tightly clutching the cotton-candy cloud for reassurance, she nearly jumped over the edge when she heard a voice say, "Magic."  
>Her gaze swung sharply to the left. Angel saw someone else sitting there, quite at ease. There was a knowing twinkle in his eye that made him seem eccentric at first glance, but soon she found that wasn't the case.<br>Smiling to comfort her, the person said, "You must be the new Miss Angelica Claire everyone is speaking of, am I correct by saying so?"  
>Angel tried to smile, but she was still mightily surprised. Nonetheless, the old toad smiled and said, "I understand that you have had a very… unusual evening. Just remember that we are here to help you whilst you stay, and you'll be perfectly fine. Already some are speaking of how different and kind you are."<br>Not sure how to take this, Angel replied, "Thank you. That news comforts me." Then, cocking her head sideways, she attempted to follow the rules and concept of this strangely complicated game. Or at least, she assumed it was a game. Based on how competitive certain people were, Angel was afraid some serious maiming or injuring might occur if they played too long.  
>That was when the toad jumped and exclaimed, "Oh, where the barnacles are my manners? My name is Toadsworth and it is very nice to meet you."<br>Angel turned to face him again; she finally smiled. Now that she knew his name, he didn't seem so secretive. His head was a creamy-color, brown dots decorating it every so often. He wore a purple vest, brown pants, and spectacles that emphasized the twinkle in his eye. Toadsworth was thoughtfully stroking his white mustache as he looked on in the general direction of the contestants.  
>How does he understand these multiple concepts? I see that these people are striving to get these "coins," and then they trade coins for Stars… Her confusion must've been portrayed across her face, for Toadsworth smiled and asked, "Confused, Miss?"<br>"A little. I don't understand what the rules are, or what the objective is… all I know about it is that the Crew seems to take a mighty pleasure in it," she responded. "I'm assuming you know?" she added hopefully.  
>But instead of answering the question, Toadsworth hummed broodingly and murmured, "'The Crew…' An interesting name. They are, after all, the Mario Crew…"<br>Not wanting to interrupt and appear rude, Angel turned back towards the game. After another minute or so the old bean finally redirected his attention back to her. "Right, you were asking about the game. Well…"  
>He proceeded to explain all the rules to Angel. After a certain period of time, he knew that she was illuminated based on her, "Oh!" of comprehension.<br>"And there you have it!" he finished confidently. During this period of time, Angel had grown much more relaxed, despite Toadsworth's first enigmatic appearance.  
>"So whoever has the most Stars, wins, right?" Angel asked, hoping that she might be getting the hang of the game.<br>"Yes, correct. If two people have the same amount of Stars, then the person with the larger number of coins wins," Toadsworth said.  
>"So what are these Bonus Stars?" questioned Angel.<br>"Bonus Starts are random awards handed out at the end of the game. An example is the Mini-Game Star. Whoever won the most mini-games wins the Mini-Game Star. Simple!" Toadsworth said, proud with his explanation. "Okay! What are the Bonus Stars going to be this game?"  
>"Don't tell anyone, but the Bonus Stars are going to be the Mini-Game Star, the Running Star, and the Happening Star. Running Star goes to whoever traveled the most spaces and the Happening Star goes to whoever landed on the most Questionable Spaces. If you tell some people, they try to cheat."<br>"I know how to keep a secret," smirked Angel. "But there's something else I've noticed. It seems some people win many mini-games but get horrible dice numbers, but some people lose almost all the mini-games but get great dice numbers. How does that happen?"  
>"Ah, you have unfortunately caught me on one of the few things I don't know," replied Toadsworth sadly. But then, resumed he uncertainly, "I guess I will never understand how some Crew members are like that."<p>

After two hours, Angel had been thoroughly entertained by chatting with Toadsworth and watching the game. She laughed to herself as she remembered Toadsworth eating the cotton candy cloud while talking about how Sweet Dream was a personal favorite to Yoshi and Boo. Angel had had to restrain from laughing when she saw Toadsworth's white mustache coated with blue sugar. Remembering something, Angel ripped off a large chunk of a neighboring cloud and meshed it into a ball for her smiley friend.  
>Finally, the Party was over, and Toadsworth excused himself so he could award the Bonus Stars. Interested, Angel followed, trying to ignore her sticky hands as she held a large wad of cotton candy cloud. She sat behind Toadsworth as she watched everyone stand still—they were completely motionless… Angel wondered how they could be so stationary for so long. As Toadsworth spoke, she studied the castle behind the contestants. She noticed it was decorated in multiple vivid colors, and there was a huge golden Star on the front of the castle.<br>Thoughts about the importance of the Star and all the colors flew through her mind. She was intrigued to note that all the colors upon the ship and the castle were the same…  
>"Without further ado, let's give out the Bonus Stars!" Toadsworth announced. "First Bonus Star is the Mini-Game Star, and the winner of this is Luigi!" Angel watched the Star appear over Luigi's head. Happy that one of her closer friends had won the award, she smiled.<br>"The next Star to be presented will be the Running Star! The winner for that is Yoshi!"  
>Again, the Star vanished and appeared, this time above Yoshi's head instead of Luigi's.<br>"And lastly, the Happening Star! The person who landed on the most Happening Spaces was Birdo!" Toadsworth announced, and then added to Angel, "With a shocking ten of these."  
>For the last time, Angel watched the Star vanish and reappear. She remembered the last Questionable space Birdo had received flung her into a giant vat of vanilla pudding; she smiled at the thought.<br>"And now... the winner of this Sweet Dream Party is..." Toadsworth paused.  
>Angel watched, puzzled, as everyone headed into the Castle. After a few seconds, she watched as dazzling fireworks lit the twilight sky. The balcony door opened and she saw Luigi standing there.<br>"Luigi!" Toadsworth finished. Mesmerized, Angel watch the fireworks explode into blue.  
>But why blue? Why not red or green or yellow? They're all blue... that's strange. I'll have to ask Peach or Mario about this one...<p>

As Angel walked back to the ship, her head swam with what she'd learned over the day. Of course, thinking only brought her a headache. She resolved to take an aspirin upon reaching the ship. While she was attempting valiantly to ignore her head throbbing, Peach and Mario joined her. They looked like they'd just had the time of their lives—which they probably had.  
>"So, what did you think? Next time you can play, huh?" suggested an exhilarated Peach. Laughing shortly, Angel held up her hands defensively and said, "Oh, no, I wouldn't be any good. I'm still confused on a few matters. Which reminds me—I have questions. First one: Why were all the fireworks at the end blue?"<br>"The fireworks were blue because Luigi won," explained Mario. "Blue is Luigi's color. Everyone here has a color. Mine is red, Peach's is pink, Luigi's is blue, Yoshi's is green, etc. Whoever wins the party gets fireworks shot off in their color to recognize their victory," Mario continued. Seeing her smile, he returned it.  
>Giving Mario thanks and another smile, Angel added thoughtfully, "There were some other things that I couldn't help but notice—what's with the bright colors? I suspect they bear tribute to something, as does the Star I keep seeing everywhere. What does it all mean?"<br>"The Star we'll explain to you another time," answered Peach. "It's a little complicated to explain. But the colors are everyone's color rolled into one design. You saw twelve colors there, yes?"  
>Angel nodded in consent.<br>"Those are the twelve colors for the twelve crew members! Understand now?"  
>Smiling in response, Angel nodded again. But before she could say anything else, Boo ambled past her. Remembering why her hand felt so sticky, Angel grabbed his arm and said, "Whoa, there, mister. I brought you a present."<br>"A present?" Boo asked, feigning surprise, "For me?!"  
>"Open up," commanded Angel, and Boo obeyed, allowing her to carefully place the cotton candy ball on his tongue. Once the ghost swallowed the gift whole, he saluted her and said creepily, "Thanks." Then he floated away towards Dry Bones.<br>Peach smiled as the specter sauntered away before turning back to Angel. "We're going to show you where you'll be staying… it's later than we thought!"  
>"No problem," said Angel earnestly. "I've been looking forward to seeing more of the cruise ship."<br>Peach and Mario seemed pleased with this response, and each began speaking eagerly about how much the ship had to offer, and how long it took to discover all its secrets. Even now, said Mario, there are still mysteries of the ship that have yet to be discovered.  
>Once she could see the ship again, Angel glanced at it with anticipation. Hearing so much about it the last five minutes made her more willing than ever to explore it. After everyone boarded, the cruise ship lurched from the dock; Angel stumbled, resulting her fall onto the deck.<br>"I'm never going to get used to that!" she huffed.  
>Mario laughed as he helped her up. "I'll show you where you'll be staying," volunteered Peach. "Follow me!"<br>Angel hurried to catch up to Peach. She noticed they were going past a lot of the places she had already visited: the boarding deck, the dining hall, the Star Pad. "These are the cabins," Peach said, stopping. "One of these will be yours. Now we just have to find an empty one..." Almost instantly she set off like a rocket again, leaving Angel to trudge after her. Looking at what Peach gestured to, Angel could see the cabins were all different. Although each had a window overlooking the sea—some of the blinds were closed to block out light—the doors were all different colors, the same brightly vivid shades she'd seen everywhere else. Hearing Peach's lax murmurs depicting the owners to their colors, "Wario's cabin... Yoshi's cabin... Toad... Toadette..." Angel was determined to memorize the colors.  
>Wario has purple, Yoshi green, Toad red-orange, Toadette magenta, Peach rosy pink…<br>She drilled this into her head until Peach stopped at the door to the left of her own, exclaiming, "Oh, here we go! I've been hoping for a new neighbor."  
>Instantly, Angel knew this particular cabin was empty. The door was the same color as the walls all over the ship—a warm and comforting ivory. Pushing the door open, Peach gestured Angel to head inside… four cream walls, a cream rug, and a cream ceiling awaited her. In front of her sat a bed with a smooth comforter. To the right, a cream chair sat against the wall, a cushion lying upon the seat. To the left, a wooden desk sat. Paper and pencils were strewn atop it, a mirror above it. On almost every side of the room there was a door—on the east wall, a pink door was standing. To the west, a blue door. And behind her was the door she had just entered from.<br>"Now, you may think that this may be too much of one color," Peach began, "but you can redesign the room now."  
>"How do I do that?" asked Angel.<br>"Just think of a color that hasn't already been taken. You can have orange, cream," at this, Peach giggled a little, "or anything else that comes to mind!"  
>Slightly overwhelmed at such a concept, Angel looked outside the window to a beautiful view of the sea. The sunlight shimmered on the water, causing the surface to look like it was sparkling with contentment. The color of the sea was a perfect mix of blue and green so it resembled aquamarine.<br>Smiling, Angel closed her eyes and pictured the color of the sea, but a few shades brighter. A glowing behind her eyelids told her the room had digested her thoughts—she opened her eyes.  
>Now, the walls and the bed blankets turned from cream to aquamarine. Glancing around the room again, with the wooden desk and headboard of the bed, the three colors that now reigned were cream, brown, and aquamarine. Glad for the change, remarked Angel, "It looks much more balanced now… It's spectacular what magic can do."<br>"Isn't it?" Peach mused, admiring the new color. Behind her, a light gleamed, and both girls turned to face the southern wall—the door was altering its color to aquamarine.  
>Smiling, the pink princess redirected her attention towards Angel. "It's official, Angelica. You're one of us now, if only for six months."<br>"If only for six months," Angel repeated, nodding a little regretfully. She was very glad to have arrived, but the girl was also thinking of when she would have to leave. If she got along so well with everyone in one day, how was she going to be able to leave them all in six months after they'd had so much time to get to know each other?  
>Just then, she was disrupted from her thoughts when a voice gasped, "Wow." She turned to see Luigi and Yoshi standing behind her and Peach.<br>"Just thought we'd stop by," the dinosaur said cheerfully, "I like the color! Looks like the sea..."  
>Moving aside from the window, Angel gestured towards the view she had been blocking. "Behold! My inspiration." Luigi and Yoshi grinned.<br>Stepping towards her, Yoshi put his hands on his hips and made a face as if he was judging the new room on a scale from one-to-ten. Apparently, he was, for his next comment happened to be, "I give it a nine, only to be surpassed by my own color, which ranks a ten."  
>"Figures," muttered Luigi, rolling his eyes. "It's Angel's opinion that matters anyway. I take it you are happy with this choice?"<br>"I am indeed. It's astounding to see magic at work…" Suddenly, that strange feeling she had had earlier that afternoon returned. She didn't realize she was confusing her friends by frowning in concentration. It took another minute, but Angel finally realized what was bugging her.  
>If these people can use magic... thought she, then maybe they can also trace back the origins of those voices and images in my dreams. They can help me!<br>She startled the other three with her sudden gasp. Giggling sheepishly, she apologized quickly and said, "Speaking of magic at work, can I ask you guys something?"  
>Angel proceeded with her explanation of the voices and the fuzzy images of her dreams that mysteriously went away. She found herself opening up to Luigi, Yoshi, and Peach, not holding back on the truth and not regretting spilling her secrets, either. Their concern comforted her greatly, causing her confidence to grow as she spoke.<br>After her tale was told, Peach frowned, which gave Angel a feeling that perhaps she had said too much. She started thinking that she was hallucinating when the princess shot a dirty look at Yoshi and Luigi, but then she blinked and Peach went back to looking concerned.  
>There was another silence. Peach seemed unnerved, her sky blue eyes narrowing in apprehension. Yoshi was twiddling his thumbs and glancing around the room. Luigi was another matter entirely—he seemed calm and controlled, but the way his blue eyes bored into Angel made her slightly uncomfortable.<br>"So do you think you can do anything?" asked she. Anything to get away from Luigi's unsettling gaze.  
>Finally, the other two were broken from their trances. "Angel," murmured Peach gently, "we… don't really know how to do that. Unless the voice returns, we cannot trace it back to where it came from. The dreams are long gone, you said, and the voices vanished. If we were able to help you, we would, but as it is—we cannot."<br>Yoshi nodded and said with forced optimism, "We'll talk to the others if you want."  
>"No," Angel said immediately. She was horrified at the prospect that others would know of her condition. The things that might be said between the three of them alone swam through her mind, barely enabling her to add, "It's all right. Maybe all I've wanted was not to find out who they were, but to actually tell someone about it. I feel much better now."<br>But Angel most certainly did not feel better. She worried about if Peach would tell Mario and the others about her abnormality. The last thing she needed was for everyone to discover that she was schizophrenic—even if it was only at times.  
>Startling her, Yoshi laughed and declared, "I'm surprised at how you could trust us so easily, Angel. Look at us! We're nothing less than weird."<br>"No, you're not!" she retorted, horrified, "You guys are really nice!" And that was true—Angel was quite taken with her new friends, even if they were not all human. Sure, they had strange ways/customs/sources of entertainment, but after all, that did not matter when it came to meeting people. What mattered was how they treated you.  
>"Oh, don't deny it, we are a little strange," Luigi said. Another moment passed and then he amended, "Strike that. We're all really strange."<br>Smiling, Angel admitted slowly, hoping not to offend Yoshi, "It did come as sort of a shock when I heard there were dinosaurs and ghosts here."  
>"Thanks a bunch," Yoshi scoffed. Then he said, "Just kidding. But at least I'm a cute dinosaur, right? I mean, think. I could be a carnivorous beast!" Angel laughed. "Yes, you could. I cannot picture you as anything except yourself."<br>"Good, because I'm so incredibly awesome," grinned Yoshi jokingly.  
>"And you're so incredibly humble, too," Luigi told him.<br>They all laughed until Angel queried, "So, what's with the doors? Knowing my luck, I'm going to get lost in my own cabin!"  
>There was more laughter at that, and Luigi finally noticed the western door was blue. Pleasantly surprised, exclaimed he, "I guess we finally have a new neighbor, Peach!"<br>"That's exactly what I said!" the princess replied, obviously very happy about it.  
>"Anyway," said Yoshi, giving the other two a condescending look. He pointed to the wooden door. "That's the closet, which you can fill when you want to wear something you left at home. Magic is awesome that way, but it's not like I need it for that purpose. All I wear are these!" Yoshi kicked out his foot, showing off his golden boots with a smug look on his face.<br>"Anyway," mimicked Luigi, making Angel laugh—Yoshi stuck his extremely long tongue out—"The wooden door is the closet, the pink door is the connection to Peach's room, the blue door is the connection to my room, and the aquamarine door behind us is the regular exit."  
>"That's pretty much it with the cabins," Yoshi said, hands on his hips and looking rather proud as if he had done all the designing work. Angel wondered if maybe he had.<br>With a warm smile, Peach then said, "Okay, Angel. Do you remember how to get to the dining hall? Just to let you know, dinner is at six, and—" "Uh, Peach?" Yoshi interrupted, raising his hand like a child in school.  
>Peach shot him a glare and continued. "Dinner is at six, so—"<br>"Peach?" questioned Luigi.  
>Shooting Luigi a very similar glare, she continued with a forced smile, "—so we'll see you then."<br>And with that, she exited the room, leaving Luigi and Yoshi baffled. But, knowing better than to debate with Peach, they both said, "See you at six," and left, leaving Angel to wonder why Peach was suddenly being so secretive. 


	4. Chapter 3

At 5:55 PM, Angel decided to be a bit late. She didn't want to be the first one there, because she got the feeling that people were late for events such as dinner. So she read her book for a little longer.

At 6:05 PM, she left the cabin, thinking that it would be okay to leave for the dining hall.

Before long, she found herself standing at the Star Pad, its faint glow about twenty feet in front of her. She knew that the dining hall was close—

But she stopped short when she heard hisses that sounded suspiciously like whispers. She hid just around the corner; she wasn't close enough to hear what her friends were saying. But one word rang crystal clear: her name. Barely moving forward and hiding against the wall, she listened, making sure no one saw her.

"You guys, remember that… meeting? That we had a while back?" The voice was only a whisper. Angel knew it was Peach's. Her heart fell. "Remember what First Star decided? About when a certain date came? Well, instead of everyone leaving, somebody stayed."

A bunch of outraged whispers filled the dining hall until Peach shut them up. Then asked someone, "Who?"

"I don't know! No one here except for that person knows. Not even Angel knows. The orders were—"

But the voices drew quieter and Angel couldn't hear what was next. Confused, she moved another inch forward, telling herself that she couldn't risk any more movement or else they would see her.

After another minute, she heard a man whisper, "So what do we do?"

"We're lucky enough to have found this out! So much could've gone wrong… but whoever it was… I guess we owe you a debt. Angel knows it was a male—and that's it. She also confided that she was actually thinking about… about suicide at one point in her life."

Angel swallowed uncomfortably. She had really thought that Peach, at least, would've kept these matters quiet. If Yoshi had spilled her secrets, she wouldn't have been so surprised. And then, thinking on it, Angel wondered if **_Luigi _**had also helped Peach tell the tale. **_That _**she found especially hurtful.

Then, out of the blue, she began to remember that day. Her nineteenth birthday… when everything went wrong. Angel remembered the sneering face that never left her, but even worse was the foreboding gaze of—

_Stop it, _she scolded herself. _Self-pity doesn't get you anywhere._

All the same, Angel felt a sense of betrayal, both from her memories and the present. Then, hearing more whispers, she turned her attention back towards the conversation…

"So whoever it was—mind you, don't reveal yourself now—we need to thank you. Angel probably wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you." Peach's tone was filled with wonder, like she was contemplating who remained and save Angel's life.

Another montage of whispers and finally the same man hissed, "So, back to other matters, since this one is obviously finished. When are we going to ask her?"

"I **_told_** you already, Wario! She is probably wondering if this is even real! Both Toadette and Dry Bones believed they'd been dreaming until they woke up the next morning! We should wait before we offer her to stay." Peach's voice rose so Angel was able to hear every word.

_Hold on a second, _Angel wanted to say, but she bit her tongue. Stepping out and revealing herself wasn't going to accomplish anything except an end to the argument.

"And I told **_you_**_,_ Peach!" Wario's voice argued back, his voice rising as well, "She'll only be here for six months and she should enjoy the time she has! Angel should decide as soon as possible to have more of an experience. We can let her decipher that we are real **_after_** she becomes one of us!"

"Guys, calm down," commanded Luigi's voice. "We can offer today or tomorrow, but Peach, if we offer too late, Wario's right. She needs to enjoy every moment she has of her short experience. Let her have as much happiness as she can, Peach. Don't wait."

The intensity of the discussion dissipated as Angel heard Dry Bones' drawling voice. "Dear Diary," he began. "Today, Wario was actually right about something! I didn't think the day existed, but apparently, Doomsday hath arrived..."

The majority of the crowd laughed—even Wario, who was going to take what he could get about being right. Angel smiled and rolled her eyes, but she did not step out. There were things yet to be discussed… tension still hung like a suspended curtain.

Determined to not be caught, Angel hardly even breathed.

Then Daisy's voice spoke, "Listen guys, we need to offer and soon… but not **_too _**soon. I think we should wait just for a couple more days. Just two or three, let all of these things sink in. After all, we are about as abnormal to those mortals as they are to us."

Some nodded in agreement while others muttered their complaints.

"No, we need to offer today," growled Wario stubbornly.

"No, we **_need _**to offer in a couple days!" retorted Peach.

"How about we ask her tomorrow?" suggested Mario.

Everyone looked at him. The silence was so complete, it wrapped around Angel like a thick blanket. Her heart was beating so loudly she was afraid someone would hear it.

"Well, if we can't offer today and we can't offer two days from now, the only other choice is that we ask Angel to stay tomorrow," he explained calmly. Angel got the feeling that it was usually Mario to settle heated debates as such. And yet…

_My family. My friends. How could I leave them?_

_Wait…_

She started to think about the possibilities of what she could have should she stay; a new and better life. Friends, family, no worries… but best of all, people who truly **_cared _**about her and would never hurt her.

The idea was suddenly so tempting that Angel almost stepped out. As it was, she smiled and took a step back, clasping her hands together and waiting for the conversation to be over so she could emerge without making it look like she had been eavesdropping.

"So we'll give her the option to stay tomorrow evening, correct?" asked Boo.

"I don't think you will need to ask her tomorrow," said Toadsworth's voice.

Angel froze. She slowly backed away from the door, but an invisible force blocked her path. Whirling around, she saw nothing, but as she reached out, a barrier prevented her fingertips from reaching any further. Her eyes grew wide, knowing she had been discovered.

"Why not?" exclaimed Daisy.

"Well, look at the time! Something tells me," Toadsworth said, raising his voice considerably, "that she has been listening for a while."

Angel could see the filmy layer of air restricting her movement close in on her. Sighing, she saw that there was only one way she **_could _**go. Knowing perfectly well that this wouldn't look good, she stepped out with a wistful smile on her face.

Peach and Toadette gasped, but no one else moved. No one seemed angry at the moment—just shocked. Angel braced herself for the shouts and accusations that she knew were soon to come.

"It is not her fault for listening in," said Toadsworth quickly. "Before you become angry, put yourself in her shoes. She's coming to meet everyone here on her first day and hears the people she hardly knows wondering when to ask her to stay forever. I think I would listen, wouldn't you? And besides, you said for her to meet you all here at six, yes?"

Frowning, answered Peach, "Well, of course, that's the standard time to tell someone new to come to dinner. We always begin at 5:30 for a meeting."

"It's 6:15…" yawned Waluigi dryly, his feet on the table and his hands behind his head. In truth, it looked like he just wanted to take a nap. But catching Angel's eye, he winked and smiled amusedly at her uneasiness.

Feeling like it would be good to add, said she, "I actually left my cabin around five after six…"

The room was silent except for the clanging from pots and pans in the kitchen. And then…

"Well, you guys **_were_** pretty loud, so I'm pretty sure Angel would have heard you shouting even if she was at her cabin," drawled Dry Bones, breaking the silence. Angel smiled at him, grateful for the defense.

Ignoring Dry Bones' comment, said Peach, "So now that you know… what do you think, Angel? Would you like to stay with us?"

Her immediate answer was, "I don't know," but that wasn't said aloud. It was true, the offer was enticing. But there were more important matters than eternal partying. Angel knew she couldn't leave her family behind.

"I can't," she answered. The Crew looked at her plaintively—Toadette hung her head with disappointment. "I have family at home. And they mean the world to me. Besides, I have a life to li—" suddenly she stopped. The Crew raised their gazes hopefully.

But it wasn't indecision that shut off her words. It was the return of that nagging feeling she'd possessed twice that day. Closing her eyes, she attempted to forget that the Crew was there and looked inside herself. And then she found it.

_I never told Peach __**anything **__about suicide, even if it's true. She knows more than she lets on. Those glares she gave Yoshi and Luigi weren't just my imagination. And if Peach knows, then everyone __**else **__does._

"Actually," she found herself saying, "I think I **_would _**like to stay."

Smiles lit the room, including her own… but for different reasons. She didn't reveal that she had heard the first part of the conversation, too. Even so, it wasn't like it would've mattered. She didn't understand why they were so upset about someone staying beside her. They didn't know who it was, anyway, why should they care?

Angel shoved aside her questions. With due patience, all the answers would come.

"But before I really consent, I have to ask you—will I be able to visit my family? I couldn't leave them forever," said she, hoping for pity.

For Angel's mind was filled with determination and anger at this point in time. Clearly the Crew knew of her earlier dilemmas; and that she'd been asking for answers. So far, they had appeared to be her friends, willing to help her with her problems. But if that were the truth, thought she bitterly, they wouldn't be keeping secrets.

All her life, she'd been wondering about this person. And based upon what Angel had overheard, that very person was somewhere in the abominable Crew. No matter what it took, she vowed, she would do anything to discover the truth… even if it meant deceiving the people she'd be forced to call friends to get it.

"Oh, of course!" exclaimed Birdo, waving her hand dismissively. "We know people that can get you to Earth whenever you want!"

A smile coming upon her face, Angel exclaimed, "Really?!"

Birdo nodded amiably and grinned. "I can't **_wait_** to see what you'll look like!"

What she'd look like… what on earth did that mean? Angel was confused yet again. _For the millionth time today, _thought she sourly.

Then she realized everyone was strangely still. No one was speaking or whispering. It looked as if they were back at the awards ceremony of the Party again, they were that still.

"What are—are you guys okay?" Angel asked.

Smiling mysteriously, replied Toadette, "Just fine. We're waiting for something, though. Trust me—you'll love it."

Just then, a miniature Star arrived. Angel was captivated by its radiating light and beauty… it was a smaller version of a Star, but just as golden as the Star that she had gotten used to. And this Star was much, much brighter. She said nothing as the it floated towards her—it stopped two feet in front of her.

Angel blinked as the tiny creature held her gaze… then it disappeared.

Startled, she yelped, looking around madly to find where it had gone.

Suddenly, she noticed her arms were glowing. Holding her arms in front of her face, every bit of skin she could see was glimmering aquamarine. Turning back to the Crew to ask what was happening, she found that they were all looking away, their eyes shut tight.

As the light died, Angel had felt nothing. She felt just the way she had before.

Daisy was the first to look back… Silently, she held out a mirror.

Angel took it and dared herself to look.

What she saw was herself, the same face that she had before she glowed aquamarine. Her face and her eyes were the only things unchanged. Her hair was now a dark chocolate-brown. The purple blouse, white sweater, and blue jeans she had been wearing were gone, replaced by an aquamarine dress that had three teal-colored ruffles at the hem. Angel lifted the skirt to see she was wearing teal high-heels. She saw the white gloves over her hands.

And she noticed the crown encrusted with pearls and emeralds lowering onto her head. Somehow, she knew it was the tiny Star, transformed by powerful magic.

No one said anything, waiting for Angel to speak. But she was left speechless.

Finally, said Luigi with a smile and a warm look in his eyes, "Immortality suits you."

Small bursts of cheers echoed around the room from the four girls.

Everyone laughed as Toadette screamed, "Ahh! You look so pretty!" and rushed forward to envelop Angel in a monster hug. Smiling, Angel hugged her back, happy that the Crew had really meant what they said.

_Stop it, _she scolded herself. _You're here for answers, not to remain here forever. _

_But what if I __**want **__to be here forever?_ _After all, maybe they'll tell you what you want to know without a struggle. They've done everything they said they would. They keep to their word—you shouldn't lie about yours._

In the end, Angel decided to wait before choosing her course of action. She realized her first plan to receive answers had been hasty and made of anger. But looking down at her excited friend, she remembered that not all people wished to take advantage of her. It had been the memory of her nineteenth birthday that had planted bitterness inside her head, but now she was quite herself again.

"Classic Toadette," laughed Waluigi, shaking his head.

Feeling grateful and excited, Angel took everyone's congratulations and thanks. While she talked to Toadette—who was bubblier than ever—she noticed that Daisy was off on the sidelines, her eyes glazed over as if she were deep in thought.

Excusing herself from the conversation, the newest recruit walked over to Daisy and sat down. Daisy didn't even seem to notice until Angel asked, "Is something the matter?"

Now that Angel was closer, she saw Daisy didn't look so good. Her skin was pale and gray circles were under her eyes. Daisy's fists were clenched so tight that if her hands weren't covered by gloves, her knuckles might've been white.

"Just tired, is all," responded Daisy, stifling a yawn. As Angelica watched her in concern, the dark circles under her eyes grew more pronounced in appearance.

Nodding and deciding to leave it be, said she, "All right. Just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Thanks, Angel. Go and have some fun, girl."

And so she headed back towards the largest part of the group, where Mario and Luigi were smiling and beckoning her towards them. But Angel mouthed, "One minute!" because it was obvious that Toadette was dying for her attention.

All Angel could think of, however, was Daisy's lie—_I can tell when people are lying, and Daisy had a lot of energy today. I don't know what she's upset about, but she's not tired._

At 1:30 AM, after partying all night with her friends, Angel grew tired. As she left to head back to her cabin, Peach caught up with her and said, "You're one of us now. Take comfort in the fact that if you ever need anything, we're here to help. Good-night."

Angel smiled in reply and walked in the direction of the cabins. As she did so, she thought of the conversation she'd overheard just eight hours beforehand. There were so many other things she could've thought about—Boo's and Dry Bones' pranks on Wario and Waluigi, the tips Mario gave her on how to **_avoid _**those particular traps, the jokes she and Luigi had created from those pranks afterward… But the conversation filled her mind.

She also couldn't help but recall how very selfish she'd been while thinking that she could possibly take advantage of the Crew. Even though she'd only arrived that day, the Crew had kept their word on everything they'd promised and said… the only reason Angel didn't have the answers about that voice yet was because throughout all the joy, mirth, and partying, she completely forgot about it.

Just then, Angel reached her cabin. She slipped inside and lay on her bed—the adrenaline from all the craziness of the evening was wearing off.

Looking around her cabin, she smiled to herself and laughed aloud when she remembered Boo turning invisible and emptying a bottle of soda over Wario's head. She giggled even more when he did it to **_herself _**after she laughed.

"Initiation ceremony!" Boo had shouted, wiggling his eyebrows and floating away, leaving her, Mario, and Luigi chortling.

"Great. Now I'm sticky," Angel had complained, but she had been corrected by Mario, who said, "Eh, more like sugary."

After a few minutes of debating, Luigi had ended the joking feud by waving his hand, causing the soda to vanish, "Now she's sticky, now she's not."

Angel grinned at the memory and rolled over, falling asleep instantly.

...

"What in the world?" Angel asked herself as she woke up, seeing the white ceiling and aquamarine walls. She momentarily forgot why there were white gloves on her hands, but almost immediately, the events of the previous day flooded her mind.

Glancing at the mirror above the wooden desk, she was surprised to find she looked as flawless as the night before.

_But wait—what had Luigi said? _

"Immortality suits you," she answered herself aloud, her eyes widening. Whipping her hands out in front of her face, Angel wondered if that were even possible. Was it true that her hands would remain the same, her height always five feet six inches, her face never gaining a wrinkle? It almost sounded too good to be true…

Shaking her head, she put on a winning smile and tried to forget the whole immortality part of the bargain.

Looking back in the mirror, she smiled at what she saw. It really **_was _**different now that she thought about it—in a good way. She felt more confident in herself… now all she wished was that her eyes were like everyone else's. For the first time, she realized that her eyes were brown, whereas everyone else's were blue...

Surprised, Angel watched as her eyes turned a bright shade of blue.

_It's a little like the seawater before the sun hits it... I kind of like it._

After deciding to keep her eyes blue for a while, she started walking to the dining hall. She happened to see a clock and yelped when she saw the time; Angel rushed towards the dining hall, sure that she was extremely late and that there would be people laughing at her the very first morning.

What she found was the exact opposite of that. There were only three people sitting at the tables in the dining hall, and all of them were silent and not at all laughing, much less at her.

Greatly confused, she checked the clock again. It was 8:35 AM. Shaking her head, muttered Angel, "I've never woken up this late since I got my job…"

"Good morning, Angel!" Toadette greeted her upon her arrival at the table. Yoshi, whose cheeks were stuffed with fruit, nodded and waved. Mario looked up from the book he had been reading and also said, "Yes, good morning."

Smiling, Angel replied, "Good morning to all of you... even if Yoshi is incomprehensible at the moment."

Yoshi gulped.

_That looked very funny,_ thought she with a silent laugh.

Then, without food in his mouth, he waved towards Angel cheerily and exclaimed with gusto, "Well, don't be shy! Grab a plate and eat!"

"I will," Angel promised him, "but I was wondering—where is everybody? It's already half past eight!"

"Yes, but any time before nine in the morning is a ghastly wake-up time for the majority of the Crew," responded Mario. "It's nice to see another early riser, right guys?"

"It would be nice to have someone to **_talk_** to," Toadette grumped, "because Yoshi's always eating and Mario's always reading!"

"Guilty as charged," garbled Yoshi, his mouth full of mangoes. Angel was thoroughly entertained by the spectacle and asked if she could pick the food he would shove in his flexible cheeks next—the dinosaur clapped his hands enthusiastically. Soon enough, Yoshi had a fruit cocktail in his mouth.

Mario only sighed and said, "Toadette, if you picked up a book every now and then, perhaps you would understand."

Toadette picked up Mario's book and then plopped it back down on the table.

"Still not interested," she griped. Mario scowled and rolled his eyes, for when Toadette had made her smart remark and stolen his book, he had lost his page. He had to scan the contents of his book for a while before he was able to resume reading.

Angel laughed and said, "Don't worry, Toadette. Unlike some," she glanced at Mario and Yoshi, "**_I_** can afford to be sociable."

"Oh, hardee-har-har," Yoshi complained. Toadette giggled.

Over the course of the next hour, people poured into the dining hall. Some grabbed plates and ate, some sat down to chat—but the majority did both. Apparently, the "newbie Crew member," as Boo was so happy to call her, was still busy mingling since everyone still wished to talk to her.

As Angel was talking to Toadette—who was very happy to have someone to socialize with—she noticed that Peach continued glancing her direction. Then she caught two words. They were "Angel" and "Party."

Angel soon grew curious as to what Peach was saying. But unlike the previous evening, she did not choose to eavesdrop.

After an exhausting yet thrilling day, Angel found herself standing in the midst of one of the Crew's Party boards as a last day event. She huffed and scowled towards Peach—who, as it turned out, was forcing Angel to play—but she couldn't stay mad for long at Peach's smug grin.

Toadsworth distributed ten coins to everyone, and the new princess gingerly placed them inside her pocket before the game started. And once it did, it was off to the races.

At first, Angel was practically thrown to the wolves—but she didn't care about that. She was having a particularly enjoyable time learning the complex rules and objectives of the game… but once she got used to it, it turned out she was a foe to be reckoned with. With both good luck and strategy on her side, Angel quickly found herself in third place, shocking everyone involved.

It took another eight turns for Angel to gain another two Stars, which secured her place as first. This surprised all; beside her, inquired Luigi with astonishment, "How are you doing this?"

In response, she smiled slyly. "Probably luck?"

"Or maybe you're just good," proposed Boo generously.

Angel waited for the awards ceremony to take place. She entered the Star Castle, which apparently used magic to take each competitor to the height needed. The higher you went, the better you played.

Shocked, she watched as she shot all the way up to the balcony, leaving a grinning Peach and lightly scowling Waluigi behind.

Still extremely surprised, Angel barely heard Toadsworth announce, "And the winner is Princess Angelica!"

Not knowing how it could have happened, Angel took all the congratulations gracefully.

"How did you do it? That was amazing!" exclaimed both Mario and Peach.

"And you said you wouldn't be any good!" Yoshi laughed hysterically, tears streaming out of his eyes because of his friend's horrible prediction.

"I'm not sure! Beginner's luck?" she replied.

The rest of the way back to the dock, she received many "Great jobs!" and many "That was phenomenal!" Angel felt as joyful as she had been when she became a Crew member.

_But something doesn't feel right... _she thought as she looked around. _I feel like someone is watching me, but no one is! What in the world?_

_..._

As it turned out, Angel was right. Someone was indeed watching her—the only thing was, she couldn't see who was spying on her. But she wasn't wrong… far from it.

Up in the sky, on a floating island, there stood a magnificent black and maroon castle. It was a fortress made solely to be as impenetrable and intimidating as possible. It was home to some of the darkest agents of the Stars' enemy… one of these enemies was observing Angel.

"Hey, dad!" called a small voice from one of the balconies of that black fortress. The speaker's comment was directed towards his father just inside, though his eye was still on the new and rather pretty aqua girl down on one of those Party boards. **"****_DAD!_****"**

"What?!" came the shouted response. His gruff tone was abnormally loud with this retort; he did not enjoy being interrupted.

Unfazed, asked the first, "Who's that aquamarine girl down in that one Party board… uh… Blooper's Grand Canal!"

At first, the possessor of the second voice was exasperated. He believed his son was being foolish as usual by thinking that there was something to be worried or concerned about. But he was **_busy _**and therefore had no time for such things.

Yet the comment about a new aquamarine colored girl caught his attention. The second hadn't noticed any sort of new recruit of the Crew's for ages…

"Aquamarine?" he asked at last. "Let me have a look."

Withdrawing from his current blueprints for his 4503rd attempt to kill the Crew, the second agent rose to go see what his son was blathering on about. Reaching his son standing expectantly in front of the telescope, he quickly bent down to look at the unfamiliar color that had suddenly appeared in his line of vision.

Bowser, the second speaker, had no idea that another girl had made her way into the Crew. Surprised, he grumbled, "Never seen her before."

And part of him was shocked that he hadn't—with her dark hair and bright blue eyes, not only did her unfamiliarity capture his attention, her appearance did as well. She was obviously a princess; the dress and crown quite proved that.

"That's my **_point_**_,_" sighed Bowser's son, Bowser Jr., in exasperation. With his little arms crossed, his goal was to appear superior to his father for knowing of the girl's arrival first. "I was wondering if you even knew the Crew had a new recruit and, if you did know, I was wondering who she was."

"Well, now I know. Happy now?"

"I still don't know who she is," Bowser Jr. grumbled.

"Apparently not. Now, shut up and let me think."

Upon hearing his father's blunt reply, Bowser Jr. stuck his tongue out at his father's retreating back. Luckily, Bowser did not see the gesture.

Reaching the blueprints he had abandoned, the plan was still rather unformed. Yet Bowser was one who enjoyed getting things done simply and easily—and Bowser Jr.'s exclamations from the balcony were not improving his temper.

At last, when his son proclaimed, "Wow! She won the Party already! New record, I highly believe!" Bowser had had enough.

Shooting upright, he roared, "Will you be **_QUIET?_**" Seeing that his demands were satisfied, he rubbed his temples. But the last comment from his son was now ringing inside his head and it would not exit his brain. Sighing, he had no choice but to endure the repetitiveness until it would cease—

"Wait," he muttered. "Did you say that she won? The first Party she ever played? You're sure of that?"

Replied Bowser Jr. with preeminence—to a degree, seeing that he did not wish to anger his father further—"Well, seeing as how I didn't see an aquamarine girl all day yesterday, and considering that I've been spying on them all day and this is the first Party they've played today, **_yes_**_,_ I'm sure."

A plan began to form in Bowser's mind, and he mused with interest, "Is that so…"

Bowser Jr. couldn't quite place the tone in his father's voice. Whether it was anger or excitement or vengeance or perhaps all three, he raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Bowser Jr.," commanded Bowser at last. "Why don't you go fetch our swimming friend? I have a present to deliver this new girl for congratulations on joining that detestable Crew. And I need it delivered as soon as possible. Which means… go fetch him **_now._**"

"Now?" whined Bowser Jr. He had been perfectly content with spying on the new girl. The way her eyebrows furrowed together amused him, as if she knew someone was watching her.

"Now," repeated Bowser.

Huffing audibly, his son ambled off to go fulfill Bowser's bidding. Because even though he didn't want to go find a certain minion, Bowser Jr. knew better than to disobey his father whilst he was in the middle of a "killing the Crew" set of mind.


	5. Chapter 4

Angel soon learned the Crew jumped on any opportunity to celebrate anything. This time around it was because of her first win on their game, and the newest recruit found herself laughing as Boo and Dry Bones rushed past her screaming, "BRING OUT THE SODA POP!"  
>Needless to say, she had to be on the watch for sudden disappearances of the specters and sudden appearances of random liquids in midair.<br>For a while, everything was as it was the previous night. People were having a spectacular time making new jokes, laughing as pranksters pulled more pranks on everyone. It was a wonderful thing for Angel to be in. The clouds cleared up overhead, and the stars were so visible she had to ask Peach and Luigi to begin teaching her which constellation was which.  
>During this, however, Angel realized there were more than just stars in the night sky. To her left and right, two strange shapes loomed overhead, blocking the stars that reigned behind them. She squinted to see if it was just her imagination, but eventually she was forced to recognize they really were there.<br>Deciding to take the risk of sounding stupid, Angel pointed at one of the black shapes and asked, "What's that up there? I haven't seen it before… it looks like something is just floating up there."  
>"That's because something is just floating up there," Luigi responded with a smile. "Two islands are always above this ship, no matter where we go. You could say it's both a blessing and a curse—friends and enemies live up there."<br>"Let's start with friends," Angel said. "Which one is the good island?"  
>"The island on the left is Donkey Kong's Island. He lives there with his sidekicks, Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong. He helps us out when we need it, and he's a nice ape until you take his bananas. Then he'll go nuts," Luigi laughed and added, "Waluigi didn't seem to get that memo."<br>Angel giggled for a moment as she saw Waluigi glaring at Luigi. Figuring out what Luigi was telling Angel, he mouthed a curse word followed by a rude gesture.  
>Regaining control of herself, Angel then questioned, "Enemies?" She couldn't help but wonder how the Crew could possibly have any enemies, what with their good nature. "What enemies?"<br>Pointing to the dark shape at their right, Peach murmured, "That is where they live… people who have wanted to quench our existences for ages. Be wary of that island, Angel, don't ever draw near it. All you need to know about it is when lightning flashes around that place, it means a new plot is being made."  
>"A new plot… to kill you?" Angel cleared up with astonishment. Peach nodded gravely; she and Luigi glanced towards the dread place… small sparks of lightning flashed here and there—all of a sudden, the lightning erupted into a fresh new wave of electricity storms.<br>Peach gasped and said quietly, "We must be careful now. Though he has never succeeded in injuring anyone once, his plots become more nefarious. We do not know what this next one is… all we can be sure of is that it's coming soon."  
>Luigi, who saw Angel's face pale, sighed upon seeing the trauma Peach was putting her under. He then said to reassure her, "Ghost stories. They always get the newcomers."<br>Peach flashed him a very dirty look, but Angel sighed in relief. "Oh," she gasped upon seeing the playful look in Luigi's eyes. "I thought you guys were serious!" Then she began to laugh, giving Peach another opportunity to shoot Luigi another death glare. Suddenly, Angel yelped and was forced to dodge out of the way as an orange liquid almost splashed onto her head.  
>"Damn it!" rang Boo's resonant shout. "Missed!"<br>And with that, he became visible and floated off, grumbling about his failed attempt to juice her. Luigi smirked after the ghost, but Peach was still concerned with the storming island up above her.  
>"Oh, they're not all ghost stories and whatnot!" butted in Wario cheerfully, causing Angel's smile to fade somewhat as she looked at Luigi, puzzled. "After all, Bowser does indeed want to kill us! Maybe he's just not in the mood right now."<br>Startled, the aquamarine princess only had time to gasp, "Oh." When she glanced back at Luigi again, he gave her an apologetic smile that said, Sorry. I tried.  
>Shaking her head, Angel's smile gradually returned as Wario smoothed his mustache and said thoughtfully, "You know, I wouldn't mind shooting a laser at him right now, actually!"<br>"A laser?" asked Angel teasingly. "What? You forget that I just got here already?"  
>Rolling her eyes at the others, said Peach, "A laser is how we defend ourselves during battle. It's used as our main means of offense—shields can be conjured for defense. Magic allows us to do many different things with our fighting tactics, Angel, and now that you're one of the Crew, you can do the same things we can! All you have to do to shoot a laser is extend your arm. It's second nature to us by now."<br>Grateful for the explanation, Angel nodded. Before she attempted to try the new experience, however, another question formed. "You use this as battle strategy? Why do you have to fight?"  
>"There are many sides to us other than our partying ways, Angel," replied Luigi with a strange gleam in his eye. "Some things are more widely known than others."<br>Angel took what she could get. Setting down her glass of punch, she steadily extended her arm towards the sky… Just then, a clean shot of aquamarine light burst out of Angel's fist and into the sky. Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch the ray of light rush off into space towards the stars overhead.  
>Out of the silence, a voice emerged. "You catch on quickly," said a watching Toadsworth, "but let's see how accurate you are." Toadsworth then threw an empty glass bottle into the air. Out of surprise, Angel took a shot at it. Everyone watched as the laser collided with the bottle. Shards of aquamarine glass trailed back onto the deck.<br>"Let's see that again!" exclaimed Luigi, and he threw two more pop bottles—one into the air and one at Angel.  
>"Whoa!" she yelped as she the pop bottle whizzed towards her face. She exploded that bottle, but it took her three tries to explode the other.<br>Excited by their new discovery, everyone began throwing pop bottles both empty and full, attempting to get Angel to hit them. She was overwhelmed at first, but with a smirk forming on her face, the newest recruit decided to make a game out of it.  
>I'm going to count how many I hit out of how many are thrown.<br>"Ah!" she shouted, ducking as four bottles flew over her head. Then she fired at any of the pop bottles randomly flying through the air. She laughed out loud whenever a full bottle was blasted by her lasers—it usually gave someone an unfortunate sticky shower. But the victim would use magic to clean themselves; she herself was doused a couple of times, because some people had a tendency to toss them over her head and then combust them to give her a nice surprise. "Alright! That's enough!" Angel shouted when there had been twenty bottles in the air at one time. She had grown dizzy attempting to combust them, but tired she was not. Laughing, she tried to find her way to a chair, but fell on the deck, much to the amusement of Mario and Luigi. Laughing as well, they pulled her off the floor and directed her to the nearest bench.  
>"Aww..." a few people said, hearing Angel's forfeit.<br>But to compensate for Angel not playing, everyone else soon participated in the new game. Luckily, nobody ever ran out of ammunition because the bottles could be fixed by magic.  
>Once she was able to see straight again, Angel found herself giggling rather girlishly at the sight. Seeing all the random glass bottles flying through the air—Boo and Dry Bones were taking advantage of the chaos to dump liters of the stuff over Wario's and Waluigi's heads—she exclaimed to Luigi sitting beside her, "I think you, Toadsworth, and I have created a new sport!"<br>Mario heard Angel, laughed with them, then said, "Yes, and it's a helpful way for some extra training which some people," he raised his voice, "ahem, Wario, refuse to do!" "HEY!" Wario shouted from about thirty feet away. "I heard that!"  
>"That may have been the point!" retorted Mario. Then, for good measure, he shook a fist at him and muttered, "Imbecile..."<br>Angel had to stifle a laugh, but Luigi just sighed and smiled halfheartedly. "See that?" he asked her. "That's what Mario and I go through every day with our opposites. You don't expect them to be our best friends, do you?"  
>"Oh, no. I wouldn't expect that in the slightest," she replied, a grin on her face. Assuring the brothers that she was capable of walking, Angel made her way towards Toadette, who had an umbrella over her head to protect her from the montage of beverages.<br>For the next couple of hours, everyone had a great time partying on the ship, playing "Pop the Bottle," as many people nicknamed it. Angel still couldn't believe how giddily the Crew jumped upon a situation to create something exciting and new—eventually she forgot about the lightning frothing from the evil island above her.  
>Eventually, Angel was brought to meet the members of the cruise ship staff. There were Koopas, Shy Guys, and Goombas. Shy Guys were little people with red coats, brown belts, blue shoes, and white masks over their faces. Luigi told her that no one had ever seen a Shy Guy's face because of the mask. Their attitudes reflected on their name; shy. One of them said, "That may have been why you haven't seen us around. We aren't very good at meeting new people, but now that we've met you, we'll come out every now and then."<br>Goombas were little brown creatures with two sharp teeth poking out of their mouths, yellow shoes on tiny, stubby legs, but were without arms. "First Star gave us the willpower to carry things even though we don't have arms, so it's not that inconvenient. Just one less thing to worry about!" Goombas looked pretty tough, Peach said, but really, they didn't fight too much.  
>After Angel met the staff, she decided to make nice with the two pranksters in order to hopefully decrease the number of jokes they played on her in the future.<br>Just as she reached the supernatural beings, however, there came a loud THUMP! The boat suddenly lurched and rocked side to side on the waves. Everyone stopped short and rushed to see what was in the water.  
>Another THUMP! The Crew wasn't sure what was going on; the water below was so dark that no one could see beneath the surface. Grabbing onto the railing so hard that her knuckles turned white, Angel waited. When nothing happened for another minute, she asked Luigi, "What was that?"<br>"Must've been a sea creature," he murmured in response. Mario nodded in agreement. He glanced over his shoulder and saw something up in the air… Angel turned towards it and was just in time to witness the largest strike of lightning she had seen yet emitting from the evil island. It lit the sky with a violent flash and was gone.  
>"Oh, no…" Mario groaned, his eyes going to Angel. "You need to get out of here, join the staff—"<br>He wasn't able to finish before the most moving jolt yet came from under the boat. The ship almost capsized; it was only thanks to the Crew's efforts that it did not. That was when the largest creature Angel had ever seen leaped from the water onto the deck.  
>Another flash of lightning illuminated the scene, and Angel's eyes widened as she took in the appearance of the monster. It was a giant white squid with dozens of tentacles that could smash down on anyone—one of them descended towards Angel. Noticing its path, she leaped out of the way, the squid almost grazing her side. As it was, the force of the attack sent her toppling towards the other side of the deck.<br>"Angel!" cried her friends, but she saw the second arm coming towards her. Rolling out of the way, she yelped as another almost smashed down on her head—yet the air around her turned blue and solidified into a shield. Clearly it had been conjured to protect her from the wrath of the squid.  
>"Giant Blooper!" Toadette squealed. Angel used the opportunity given to her from the blue shield to get back to her legs. As a third peal of lightning laminated the darkness, Angel was able to see the Giant Blooper in more detail.<br>There was a black mark around its stormy gray eyes. Its gaze was locked on someone just in front of her—Mario. He glared determinedly back at the monster, poised so that the squid couldn't harm her.  
>"Go, Angel!" she heard another voice cry. It was Peach.<br>Angel, however, shook her head. Lighting up her fists, she too glared at the challenger, ready to prove that she was not as weak as it thought she was.  
>The squid's eyes darted to her—they then narrowed as it registered the unfamiliar color. A menacing gleam passed through its eyes, but Angel refused to let herself quail under its ferocious gaze.<br>Then a hand was on her arm, and a voice shouted, "Duck!" Obeying without a second thought, Angel knew it was Luigi next to her. He pulled her towards an awaiting Koopa that would lead her to safety, but Angel only shook her head again.  
>"Angel, don't be ridiculous," groaned Luigi. "You've just arrived, and this is a real battle! You need to be safe."<br>"No! If I'm going to be part of this Crew, I need to earn myself a place. Running from this battle, no matter the danger, isn't going to do that. I'll be fine, Luigi… after all, if what you say is true, then what makes you think this plan will be the one to injure somebody? Please let me stand beside you?" she asked more than said. Luigi had no idea just what to say. At last, he only sighed and said, "Please stay behind me," before letting go of her arm.  
>The new recruit grinned and murmured, "Easy enough," as she raised her fist and shot a laser into the sky. The aquamarine bolt of light managed to hit the giant squid's forehead, and it did not look happy.<br>More tentacles swung towards Angel and Luigi. Angel was forced to slide out of the way. Beside her, Luigi was firing his blue lasers, burning the arms that came towards them.  
>As Angel looked around, she saw the Giant Blooper slamming its tentacles down on the ship, severely damaging it. Water burst onto the deck, and the ship began to tilt. Toadette had to grab Wario by his hand so he wouldn't fall into the midnight water. The Shy Guys, Waluigi, Toad, and Birdo took a quick break to fix the ship, and then the ship began to turn back upright. Then the three Crew members went back to the battle while the Shy Guys, Goombas and Koopas waited for another leak to spring up so they could fix it.<br>At the front line, Daisy and Mario seemed to be a very good team. Daisy ran towards him, and just when it appeared they would crash, Mario gave the yellow princess a boost into the air, where she flew up to the Giant Blooper and shot it directly in the eye.  
>The Blooper squealed and thrashed before falling into the navy ocean. The Crew stopped for a moment to rest and recover.<br>But then a dozen tentacles spurt up from the water, grabbing onto anything it could… Mario, Birdo, and Toad were all dragged back into the ocean below.  
>"Yeah, that'll happen," Yoshi muttered, diving neatly into the sea. The rest of the Crew did the same, and Angel prepared to follow, but Peach stopped her.<br>"You're too new, you cannot go. You need more experience," pleaded Peach, holding Angel back. But Angel only frowned and said, "I go in to help my friends, Peach, no matter what. That's what this Crew is all about, isn't it?"  
>Without waiting for an answer, she dove into the water below.<br>The water was freezing from the lack of sunlight, and she couldn't see anything except an avalanche of bubbles for a number of seconds. The bubbles increased when Peach jumped in beside her.  
>Exchanging significant looks, Peach pointed to something below them. Angel blinked once and was able to see the Blooper now holding four of their friends captive. Somehow, Dry Bones had been bested too, and it didn't seem to sit well with him. He was biting the tentacle as if his efforts might actually free him.<br>Angel swam to where lasers launched through the water. Bubbles surrounded the lasers as water and light were not compatible—this made it harder for the Crew to see.  
>Taking careful aim, she fired her laser towards the giant squid.<br>The aquamarine light somehow hit one of the tentacles. Birdo successfully pried herself loose from the Blooper's death grip, nodding her thanks to Angel as she began shooting her own lasers at the creature.  
>Again, the princess aimed carefully at the squid, which was darting round and round the water, dodging all the lasers coming its way. Angel smirked as one of the yellow lasers from Daisy hit its eye, and then she muttered, "My turn."<br>She let loose another aquamarine laser. The second shot almost hit Toad—but at a swift movement from the squid, the projectile did hit the tentacle capturing Toad, and he too was able to shove himself away from the Blooper.  
>Three things happened then.<br>The first was that everyone suddenly stopped shooting their lasers to look at Angel. They were astonished by her accuracy—this being her first battle ever, her skill was amazing. Angel furiously realized that no one was battling the Blooper because of their astonishment.  
>Secondly, the Blooper realized who its greatest threat was. The aquamarine princess that kept hitting him might stop his plan, so he swatted her and sent her spiraling through the water. Angel didn't have time to react, so she was slammed on her back against the ship. She groaned and was momentarily blinded, her vision tainted with black and white dots.<br>And thirdly, the Blooper had released its tentacles on the Crew once more. Many of the Crew members had had to swim and dart swiftly out of the way, but some were not fast enough. Though Dry Bones had finally chewed his way out of the Blooper's grasp, Luigi had been captured upon attempting to reach Angel as she sunk to the ocean floor.  
>Triumphant, the humongous squid propelled itself back to the surface, the Crew's leaders in its clutches. Everyone sped after it, but since they were battling was a squid, they were quickly left behind.<br>Angel finally shook her head clear and looked around. Seeing the scene in front of her, she groaned and wondered how she let herself become distracted. But with the aid of a little magic, she reached the surface.  
>Breaking the surface of the ocean, Angel gasped for breath. Perusing the sight in front of her, she grew puzzled as to why the Blooper was taking the brothers further up in the air. More lightning flashed. A full-fledged storm was erupting over the horizon, and it was all Angel could do to escape the water before a lightning bolt struck it. Meanwhile, the rest of the Crew had already boarded the ship. Even before reaching the deck Angel was firing more lasers into the sky—by chance, one of her aquamarine lasers rebounded off of a pink laser. Everyone watched in fear and hope as the shot hit one of the tentacles. One of the brothers tumbled down to the sea.<br>Diving back in the ocean, Angel and Yoshi swam towards the person who'd fallen. She could see the familiar red that signaled Mario was floating in the water.  
>Together, she and Yoshi aided him in breaking to the surface. Once above, Angel exclaimed, "Are you all right?" Yoshi asked the same question with the same concern. Once he assured them that he was fine, Mario said groggily, "Luigi is still in trouble. Someone needs to do something…"<br>"Can you get him out?" Angel asked Yoshi, knowing that she had a limited amount of time left. Seeing the dinosaur's nod, she leaped out of the water and onto the deck, where she was instantly greeted by shouts and pleads to do something. As everyone swarmed her, asking if she could reach the Blooper even at its current height, Angel replied, "I will keep firing until the lights of my eyes die!"  
>But not even she could reach it any longer—the Blooper was too far out of range. Angel did not know how to free Luigi, and by this time, many feared for the worst.<br>"It's too late," whispered Toadette, tears of horror sparking her eyes.  
>"Don't you dare say that," Daisy snapped, still firing her yellow lasers into the sky even though the situation was all but hopeless.<br>Angel followed Daisy's lead, but the only thing she could see was the silhouette of the monstrous creature. As she glanced up, the storm clouds steadily positioned themselves just above the Blooper, and she realized what was to happen just before it did.  
>"It's going to electrocute him!"<br>Daisy restrained sobs and released everything she had into the sky. But even if Daisy and Angel together were somehow able to free Luigi, the fall into the water would kill him anyway.  
>Quick thinking was the only way to save anyone at this point, Angel realized. She thought back to what magic could do, and she relived all the battle strategies that her friends had used. It was then she figured out a way to combine the two things that just might escalate her to the same height.<br>"I've got an idea!" shouted Angel excitedly. Glancing over to Boo, she shared a nod with him. "Put all your energy into this!"  
>The specter's eyebrows furrowed as he waited for Angel to run towards him. And she did—she put all her magic and energy into the move. Running towards the ghost as fast as she could, when he boosted her up, she released all the magic she had built up in the jump.<br>Angel flew through the air, exhilarated as the wind rushed past her ears. The shadow of the Blooper drew closer, and the gray clouds above her thickened and churned. Every now and then they would light up, preparing for the bolt that would end it.  
>And finally, she kicked the Blooper in the face. It lurched away from her, and Angel landed on the tentacle stretched out to the sky. Grinning hopefully at Luigi, she murmured, "Now let's get you out of here."<br>Amazed and relieved, he asked faintly, "How did you…"  
>"Not sure," she replied, pulling him out of the creature's grip. "Quick thinking."<br>A peal of thunder distracted them. They glanced up to see the clouds illuminated by the brightest light Angel had ever seen. Knowing what was to happen, she pushed Luigi to the ship, knowing the Crew would be able to save him. But just as she was about to jump, she gasped.  
>Intense pain spread all throughout her body, as if it had just burned from the inside-out. Angel arched back and screamed at the sky, the pain too much for her to handle at once. She twisted on one of the Blooper's many arms, falling as her legs and body lost all feeling….Each millisecond lasted ten minutes; Angel knew that the lightning bolt had been absorbed straight through her back to her heart.<br>Her ears were ringing, her vision black. The last thing Angel knew was the dizzying sensation of falling back down towards the ocean before she fell into darkness. 


	6. Chapter 5

Everyone froze as they saw the pure white lightning bolt strike towards the three small figures in the sky. Its aura of power captivated the Crew with fear… hearing the shrill scream in the sky, they knew what happened. Luigi and Angel came plummeting towards the ocean.

There came a tremendous splash as they fell into the ocean below. Finally released from their anguished trances, everyone dove into the midnight blue ocean, refusing to acknowledge the possibility that they might not have anyone to save. The fiercely churning waves added to the increasing fear of the Crew.

Bubbles surrounded Peach as she leaped into the water; an avalanche of them rained down around her. Once she was able to see through them, she impatiently brushed her golden hair out of her eyes, scanning the water only to find darkness. She again began to fear for the worst—it was almost as if Luigi and Angel had disappeared.

Just then, a small figure paddled forth. Peach turned and saw Toad's little hand clamped around another that wore a white glove. He was kicking furiously, struggling to bring Angel to shore. It looked like the little fungus was almost out of breath, so Peach relieved him of Angel's custody and gestured to the surface above. Together, they climbed aboard the cruise ship.

Meanwhile, Luigi and Yoshi met up. The dinosaur attempted to bring him up to the surface—but his smile at Luigi's survival diminished seeing the look on his face. Yoshi used magic to shoot them upon the cruise ship deck, where the others were waiting.

Silence took over as everyone regained their breath. Though they were drenched and exhausted, the Crew knew that the battle might not be over just yet. Many had their fists lit as they perused the ocean and the sky—just then, Waluigi exclaimed, "Look!" as he pointed off to the distance.

The Crew turned and saw a large black shadow speeding off towards the impending blackness of Bowser's Island, confirming the Crew's suspicions about who ordered the attack.

Scowls and a few muttered curses followed the Blooper as it fled. It was then that Toad murmured, "You guys," and gestured to Angel, who remained still on the ground.

Immediately, Luigi set off towards her. Falling to his knees, he shook his head and muttered, "This shouldn't have happened." In that moment, he understood that the lightning bolt had struck her through her back to where her heart would be—**_should_** be, thought Luigi bitterly—beating. Angel's chest was black, charred, and unmoving. Bits of dead skin were flecked over her once beautiful aquamarine dress. Now, however, the dress was burned and singed, and the brooch that once sat proudly over her chest was now no longer recognizable as a pearl. Her crown had rolled off her head, but it was somehow unscathed.

Furiously wiping away the pieces of black bedecking the aquamarine, Peach gasped as she saw the skin that had been struck underneath. It was shiny and red, inflamed with the heat it had picked up because of the lightning bolt. It looked as if it had swelled over Angel's very heart… based on where she had been hit, it wasn't a very unlikely possibility.

Glancing sideways at Luigi, Peach could see the desperation in his eyes. Though she did not know what had happened after Angel had disappeared, based on his expression she could only guess that the newest recruit had saved him but was struck before she escaped as well.

Finally, a timid voice emerged out of the silence… Daisy edged nearer to Angel and Luigi as if she was afraid to. There was a slight squeak to her voice as she asked, "Are you okay?"

A flash of anger overtook the remorse in Luigi's eyes for a moment as he repeated, "Am I **_okay?!_** Angel just took the fate that should have been mine, the one thing I've sworn never to let anyone do. I tried to keep her safe, and look what happened! She **_died_** because of me! So I'm **_perfect_****,** thanks for asking."

Daisy stepped back as if she'd been slapped. Seeing the way he'd hurt her, he amended quickly, "I'm sorry, Daisy. I shouldn't have said that. I don't know what to do… this is all my fault."

"She had so much waiting for her…" Toadette sobbed, wiping away the cascading tears trickling down her face. As soon as she said this, however, she regretted it; Luigi sighed and closed his eyes. Everyone knew why he was most upset. Out of all the Crew members, Angel had perhaps gotten to know him the best.

Toadsworth came forth, his eyes fixed on Angel as he hobbled towards the Crew. Bending to his knees, he murmured, "No…" before checking the pulse in her neck. Though no one else saw it, a flash of hope flew through his eyes. After checking her wrists, the old toad then smiled, the familiar twinkle returned to his eyes. "It is much too early for tears, my friends. She is alive. But just."

At first, the words of their old advisor didn't sink in. But soon, there were similar flashes of hope and joy being passed around throughout the Crew; Toadsworth's smile became somewhat fixed. Seeing that nobody was taking the initiative, he asked pleasantly, "And do you know what that means?"

Silence.

Exasperated and frustrated, Toadsworth's face became beet red as he shouted, "It means **_GET HER TO THE HOSPITAL WING!_**"

Jarred at last, everyone hustled to alert the doctors about what had happened. Luigi and Peach stayed behind, and gently, Luigi lifted Angel's limp form. He only had time to look at her face before Peach was ushering him around the corner to where the Toad Doctors would hopefully be waiting.

...

In the hospital wing, Luigi laid Angel down on one of the white beds. He then looked down at her surprisingly peaceful face and sighed quietly.

Instantly, the four Toad Doctors rushed out of their office. They were just like Toad, except in different colors: green, purple, yellow, and blue. The blue Toad Doctor was in charge; he took one look at Angel and began shouting for herbs.

"I need a Turtley Leaf over here! And don't forget the Desert Cactuar leaves! The Heavens knows what would happen if they forgot those..."

Everyone stood and watched as the blue Toad Doctor received the herbs and began mixing them. It was an invigorating procedure and the Crew knew better than to get in his way. So, standing a good distance back, they all observed the process, hoping the Doctors would be able to save their newest member.

After another minute, the blue Toad Doctor exclaimed, "It's done. Now we must get her to drink it. Seeing as she's unconscious, it can't be too difficult."

He then poured the potion down Angel's throat, the Crew hovering worriedly over her.

"That went easier than expected," the Doctor said with surprise. "Now we just wait for its effects to kick in."

What the twelve bystanders were expecting was a magical remedy—they waited for the black skin to disappear, the inflamed red to reduce to a soft baby pink. More than anything, they expected to see her newly blue eyes and her small smile that many found endearing. But something different happened that they were not expecting at **_all._**

Angel started moving, but her teeth were gritted and her fists were clenched—as she began to lose the numbness she had acquired, the Crew noticed that she was thrashing as if under torture. Many paled as they watched her, wondering if the medicine had somehow gone astray.

Finally, Luigi spoke what all were thinking. His face a mask, he asked, "Is this supposed to happen?"

"Unfortunately, not all medicines are painless," the yellow Toad Doctor told him quietly, "So yes, this is supposed to occur. It would be a concern if she were not in pain, actually..."

Panicky, Birdo, Toad, and Waluigi held Angel down so she wouldn't hit herself by mistake, but everyone noticed that didn't work so well. Sensing that someone was trying to hold her down seemed to make Angel even more afraid, so she only tossed harder.

But Birdo, Toad, and Waluigi were determined to help her, so they just grit their teeth and went through with it. Their efforts were successful; after another minute, Angel ceased thrashing. Yet because of the excess paleness to her face and her balled fists, everyone knew that she still suffered from the medicine's effects.

...

Angel couldn't breathe because of the burning consuming her body. Though she lost consciousness a little while back, her mind had awoken upon feeling a pair of hands wrap lightly around her body. She wondered who it was.

She hadn't been able to hear what was going on for a few minutes due to the dull ringing in her ears, and Angel found that she did not yet have the strength nor will to open her eyes. Brightly colored dots flew around the blackness surrounding her, and she had felt a liquid travel down her throat. She had swallowed it—but as soon as the fire began spreading throughout her body, Angel regretted it.

The fiery pain was almost intolerable. If she had been able to open her mouth, she would have screamed. As it was, she knew that the others must have been close by, and for their sake, she clenched her teeth and restrained her misery. While she had been focusing on keeping her suffering internally, three pairs of hands suddenly forced her down.

Afraid, Angel thrashed harder, wondering why they were holding her so. Then a faint whisper could be heard. "Angel, it's me. Birdo! Don't be afraid, we're here. It's okay... I'm sorry, but I'm not sure how long this medicine's effects last, so just grit and bare it, okay? We need you here, you know. You aren't leaving us just yet!"

Hearing that it was one of her friends beside her, Angel attempted to cease moving. Feeling that their grip lessened, it was with grim satisfaction that she figured it worked.

Gradually, the burning faded, and Angel felt a dull throbbing instead. Though she was grateful the fire had been quenched at last, she kept her teeth ground together so that she wouldn't scream. Soon after the pain was gone, Angel heard a voice saying, "Now that the heat trapped inside her body has boiled away, she will regain her normal temperature. But we will have to give her a second dose soon..."

Angel couldn't help but despair hearing this last sentence. Another round of fire… she couldn't stand the thought. That lightning strike had hurt less than the medicine that was supposed to help her.

As the pain and throbbing subsided, she waited a minute. Then another. Finally, when she thought she was ready, Angel opened her eyes.

Everyone was standing around her. She saw four other Toads that all wore white doctor coats, and everyone began looking at each other hopefully, although no one said anything.

Suddenly, abandoning their quiet approach, everyone began asking their questions at once. Their words were lost and jumbled in Angel's head—her thoughts swam and repeated certain words that didn't make any sense out of context. Just the **_effort_** of trying to keep up threatened Angel's consciousness.

Noting how overwhelmed she seemed, Luigi shouted, "Guys! She just woke up and you're all talking to her at once! She's probably getting a headache from all of you asking 'are you okay,' at the same time!"

Grateful for his intervention, Angel managed to nod, although stripes of red appeared across her vision. But determined to answer the main question that had been asked, she answered almost inaudibly, "I feel fine now."

Relieved, the Crew smiled and backed away, realizing that they had been practically surrounding her. Though they talked one at a time now, Angel still had a hard time deciphering their words and relaying her own messages.

Seeing this, Luigi said, "Rest. You can talk to us later."

Agreeing, the blue Toad Doctor told her, "You can tell me if you need anything after you sleep."

With a small smile, Angel dropped off into blissful sleep, wishing to avoid any more pain a second dose of medicine would bring.

...

Not everyone was as relieved as the Crew in that moment.

Up on Bowser's Island, tensions were running high. The Giant Blooper had been transported up to the castle, and the report of the squid's attack had just been given. Despite the fact that the Blooper had electrocuted **_somebody,_** the fact that his plan had gone astray _yet __**again **_caused Bowser's anger.

But then, calming himself, asked the dragon, "So you're saying you almost succeeded, but didn't. That's what matters, Captain. The thing that matters overall is whether the mission succeeded or failed. The lightning was supposed to hit Mario, yet you didn't even capture the right brother. Secondly, that brother shouldn't have gotten away, and **_I don't care_** that it hit the new girl. You have failed me, and I will only allow you one last chance before I decide whether you shall be promoted or put to better use. But your chance shall not come anytime soon."

"Well, would you look at that?" cried Bowser Jr. from the balcony. Bowser narrowed his eyes in annoyance in his son's general direction—he found it particularly distracting when the Crew's events of every day were spoken aloud. "Tough, that one is! Hey, Dad!"

Sighing, asked Bowser in irritation, "What can it possibly be this time?!"

"That girl down there, the new one! She isn't even dead, not even a little bit! Well, maybe just a little bit. Ouch, that looks like it hurt," added the little dragon with some amusement. "What… uh-oh. Looks like she's going to the hospital wing now. Maybe we should send someone to finish her off!"

Scowling, muttered Bowser, "Let me see." He personally had a hard time believing that the aquamarine princess—Abigail or Alex or whatever her name was—had survived an enchanted lightning bolt through the heart. Yet he was also curious as to whether or not there was a chance at reviving her. "Well, would you look at that…"

What he had seen was the oldster talking to the Crew until they had all darted off to one corner. Peach and Luigi—who should've been dead if his stupid minion hadn't failed, thought Bowser—remained behind. He watched as Luigi picked her up in his arms and rushed off to somewhere that could either be the hospital wing or the cemetery.

"Told you," bragged Bowser Jr. with superiority.

Glaring at him out of the corner of his eye, said Bowser, "Well, you fail to bring me a relevant point out of this. Now I'm off to make another plan, since **_this_** one failed. Do not disturb me unless you wish to be grounded for a month." And he stalked off angrily to his quarters, fuming about how his latest plan had somehow derailed… yet again.

Once he was gone, Bowser Jr. resisted the temptation to make a rather rude gesture behind his father's back. As it was, he contented himself with a snort. Then, in an undertone, "When your next oh-so-spectacular plan goes wrong too, I'm gonna laugh at you, Dad."

...

Black was Angel's world for quite a while afterward. Though she did not know it, there was always someone inside the hospital wing watching over her, searching despondently for a sign that she might wake. Yet each time there was nothing, so they would leave only to return the next day.

At last, Angel regained enough strength to pry her eyes open. She remembered that she had been taken to a sort of doctor's office. There was no one around—it must've been either very late in the night or the others must've been off at a party.

Closing her eyes again, Angel sighed. She stayed stationary for a few minutes, trying to steady her breathing, but suddenly there was a surge of painful heat from where her heart was.

"Ah!" she gasped, sitting bolt upright. The Doctor—he looked like Toad, except with green dots on his head—jumped back and restrained his own outburst. Angel looked down to where the burns were and saw soft green leaves over them. She glanced at the Doctor with puzzlement.

Smiling, said he, "I'm sorry, princess, but that was necessary. That was the last one, though."

Angel's eyebrows furrowed as she asked, "How long have I been in here?"

Swallowing, responded the Doctor, "About five days."

_Five days? _Angel thought with horrification. Shaking her head—it instantly caused for her to be dizzy, so she stopped—she said aloud, "I can't believe it! How was I out for so long?"

"Sometimes certain injuries can leave you unconscious for longer," said the Doctor gravely. "You were quite lucky that Toadsworth noticed you were alive. Had you been brought to us another hour later, there would've been nothing we could have done. As it is, I'm surprised you are awake even **_now._**"

It took a bit for Angel to understand this. The thought that she had been out for over five days was quite difficult for her to grasp. But then she thought about her friends, wondering where they were and if they had even bothered to visit her.

Practically reading her mind, said the Doctor, "The others have been in here for quite a while. This is one of the rare times the hospital wing has been empty… most likely because it is three in the morning, of course," he added thoughtfully. "So they will be sleeping."

Grateful for the explanation, Angel nodded and opened her mouth to ask another question. But before it could escape her mouth, answered he, "You are able to leave in another few minutes if you wish."

How he knew what she was going to ask brought a smile to the princess's face. Laying down at his insistence, she waited patiently—more or less—as five minutes slowly ticked by. Though she knew it would make time seem longer, Angel couldn't help but watch the clock.

At last, she was free to go. Grinning and expressing her thanks, she exited the hospital wing. Breathing in fresh salty air, Angel couldn't keep back a grin as she saw the stars twinkling brightly overhead. Turning, she froze upon seeing a couple people standing by the Star Pad. Curious as to who else was up at such a ghastly hour, Angel drew closer.

She smiled realizing that it was Luigi and Peach. Both of them looked rather anxious, and they were speaking in whispers. As Angel drew nearer, she discerned a few words: "I don't know what will happen…"

"She'll be all right, Luigi, the Doctors said so."

"It's my fault this happened. She shouldn't be in there."

"Don't say that. Think of tomorrow, or whenever it is she'll be back—"

"Like now?" Angel spoke up finally. She laughed seeing their taken back reactions, but once they realized she was truly there, relieved smiles took over their faces. Peach rushed to her and put her hands over Angel's arms, appraising her hopefully. Seeing that Angel was indeed well and whole, she grinned and exclaimed, "I can't believe it! You're back!"

"Yes, I'm back. Great time for me to wake up, huh? The Toad Doctor told me that it's three in the morning! What are you guys doing up?"

Shaking his head, Luigi drew forward and replied, "We haven't been able to sleep. These last few nights have been rather restless for all of us… we've been worried sick about you, Angel." His eyes remained on her face, carefully avoiding the still visible burn on her chest.

Finally, though, he found that he couldn't simply act as if Angel was perfectly fine. Glancing down, he sighed again seeing that though the skin was now soft and baby pink, there was a jagged scar over her heart.

Noticing what he was looking at, Angel lifted his chin and murmured, "It's fine. It's just a scar."

"Scars remain forever," he replied quietly, but Angel wouldn't hear of it.

"Stop that," she retorted. "My goal that night was to save you. I would've done anything to accomplish that, and I did. Now that we're certain I'm healed and well, I don't want you thinking that it should've been you. We're both alive."

Seeing the pleading look in her eyes, Luigi only gave her a rueful smile. Then, at a reminder from Peach—she had pinched him, gesturing to the cabin area—that smile grew slightly. "Come on," he ushered. "You should sleep some more."

Angel narrowed her eyes. "I've been sleeping for five days."

Laughing, said Peach, "Well, you should at least go to lie down again. Come on, we'll bring you back to your cabin."

Peach and Luigi each took hold of one of Angel's arms, despite her saying that she could walk just fine. They apparently didn't want to hear it and simply continued to bring her around the corner to where the cabins were. But as they walked, Angel happened to glance at one of the clocks on the wall. Frowning, she mused, "I thought it was three in the morning."

The clock had read ten at night.

Said Peach quickly, "Maybe it's broken," guiding her with a little more urgency.

At last, the trio reached the aquamarine door. Peach released Angel's arm and moved forward to open the door.

Angel turned and smiled at them. "Thanks for helping me. I should—"

Just before turning on the light, Angel screamed and stumbled backwards as a pair of glittery red eyes assaulted her.


	7. Chapter 6

Gasping, Angel flew back into Luigi's arms and shouted, "What the hell!" upon hearing the laughter from inside the room. She personally did **_not_** find anything funny about it.

Boo then sauntered outside and wiggled his eyebrows. "That… was… **_awesome!_**" he shouted gleefully, triumphantly twirling in the air.

"What the hell?!" repeated Angel, breathing heavily from her traumatic experience. Now that the light was on, she could see the rest of the Crew inside her room. Toad and Toadette were sitting on her bed, and Dry Bones was lying carelessly on the desk, waving amicably with a wicked grin on his face. The rest were standing and laughing as they saw her reaction to their little surprise.

"Surprise!" giggled Birdo, beaming at Angel's expression.

Getting over her shock, Angel embarrassedly detached herself from Luigi. But glaring at her friends evilly, she rolled her eyes and more or less shouted, "What are you doing here! Trying to put me back in the hospital wing?!"

With a malicious grin, drawled Dry Bones, "Nice to see you, too."

Exasperated, huffed Angel, "I **_am_** glad to see you, it's just that I didn't think that you would all be hiding in here, waiting to scare me out of my wits! I swear, I almost had a heart attack," she added with a scowl at Boo. He simply wiggled his eyebrows and stuck his tongue out at her, still filled with euphoria at his success. "I had expected to be seeing you all tomorrow, like at the Star Pad or somewhere."

"Well, we're here instead," Daisy grinned.

"So I've noticed," grumbled Angel under her breath. Then, raising an eyebrow, asked she, "So why are you guys all here at three in the morning again?"

Toadette giggled merrily and exclaimed, "The Doctors only told you that because we asked them to! It's about ten, actually."

"So the clock **_wasn't_** broken!" Angel gasped, pointing an accusing finger at Luigi and Peach. "Ugh, you guys… Thanks for the warning."

With a grin, Luigi said, "Hey, Toadette threatened to roast us if we gave it away." He said this with a wary glance at the mushroom girl; Angel could see she was nodding in satisfaction, an evil glimmer in her eyes. Angel knew then to never doubt a seemingly harmless threat from Toadette… **_ever._**

"Yep!" stated the mushroom girl proudly. "It was my idea! Mine and Peach's. I didn't think it would be this funny, though."

Angel nodded slowly and replied, "Yeah, well, if you ever get a supposedly funny idea about doing something like this again, just try not to give me a heart attack, m'kay?"

Wario smirked and crossed his arms. "Fair enough. But let me just say that it's going to be fun throwing your party on the 30th. I can't make any promises saying that you won't go into shock there."

For a moment, everyone laughed. But Angel felt the tension mixed in with that laugh, and she felt that there was something wrong. There was something she had overlooked—and then she realized—

"Wait a minute… I never told you guys my birthday. Did I?"

The silence proved the Crew guilty. Many of them glared in Wario's general direction, and Angel narrowed her eyes in confusion. "How did you guys know about that?" A sudden dawning of information hit her, and she gasped, backing away.

"You," was all she said, and she took another step backward. "It was always you." Taking a third step, Angel yelped and jumped away from Peach, who was casually blocking the door. Mario and Waluigi were also doing the same with the other doors.

Becoming nervous, Angel tried to take deep breaths. "You guys were always the ones beside me. You didn't tell me. You lied to me—I asked. The only thing I asked for was the truth, and you lied. What am I supposed to say to that?"

Her whispers stung the Crew… they knew their secret had been revealed; for it was indeed they who had been the voices and figures in Angel's dreams. They had been ordered to leave her the day she turned thirteen to allow her to grow up with her own beliefs and live a normal life after that. But of course, Angel didn't know that.

All she knew was that one person had stayed beside her… and that he saved her life.

"Angel," Peach tried to say gently, reaching out to comfort her. But the aquamarine princess recoiled and glanced at her hands, at the white gloves there.

"What is this?" she asked, shaking her hand at Peach. "Is this all some sort of… of **_joke?_** What does this even mean?" She took her crown off and set it down upon the desk, causing for a few to gasp out of shock. Princesses **_always_** wore their crowns.

"It means…" said Luigi calmly. "That we've been waiting for you."

Angel stopped short and glared at him. "You've been waiting for me," she repeated with disbelief. "You mean to say that I have always been meant to find myself here? That fate brought me to this ship? Why would it—look how well it's turning out for me so far! If I'm here just like you planned without my consent, the **_least_** you can do is answer one question for me."

Everyone listened with apprehension, not sure what to say or do. Simultaneously they turned to Mario, who was watching her with an expression be-ridden of all emotion.

"What do you want to know?" he finally asked.

For a moment, she hesitated. There were so many things she wanted to ask—why was she, out of all people, so special? How come no one told her it was they who'd been with her until her thirteenth birthday? Angel was overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of it all.

Then she knew.

"Until my thirteenth birthday, you were all there. After that day, you left, all but one. He stayed, and saved my life afterward. I should have known you were the voices the moment I heard Peach say that I attempted suicide. Yes, I heard **_that_** part, too," she said hastily as some of the Crew members gasped. "I might have tried again if it wasn't for that person. I want to know who it was. It doesn't have to be now, just sometime before I go back home—I want to thank you. I wish to know if there's anything I can do for you saving my life. Who knows, maybe during my stay here, I can save **_yours._**"

_I'm rather good at that, apparently, _Angel thought with a grim smile. The others smiled sympathetically upon hearing her wish. Yet there was silence.

"Just sometime before I leave," she restated hopefully. She didn't expect the person to come forth at that time, but hope gnawed at her anyway. Yet still there was silence, and finally she said, "All right. That's all… I suppose."

Her last was filled with a questioning tone, and Mario noticed it. He then asked, "Is there more you want answers to?"

Relieved, Angel sighed and nodded. "Why didn't you tell me straight off from the start? You weren't even going to tell me at all, were you." This last was more a statement than a question.

Slowly, Mario nodded and said, "You're right. We weren't. But now that we know how much you want the truth, I suppose it's only fitting that we give you our story… so long as you give us yours. Most of us don't know what happened to you after we left. We were ordered to leave you alone so you could grow up, live your own life and believe your own beliefs. When Peach told us… we couldn't believe it. One answer deserves another."

Though she knew that her answers were about to be given, Angel couldn't help but flinch at Mario's condition. She had never told anyone about the days leading up to her nineteenth birthday—no one except for her parents and closet friends. She was afraid of what her new friends might think, yet it was clear that if she wanted answers, Angel was to be the first to speak.

And so she sighed, closed her eyes, and said: "It started my senior year. I had been working to get into the college I'd dreamed of… Champlain College in Vermont. It was a college for writing, and I'd always wished to be an author. Unfortunately, it was an expensive school. My friend Arimay and I teamed up for studying and homework, but our boyfriends were always with us. Kyle, Jake, Arimay and I planned out the next five to ten years of our life—we would go to the same college, attempt for the same degrees, dorm together… everything.

"Eventually, we attended Champlain. All our hard work paid off, and for one year we lived the life we'd always wanted. The first year of school was almost over, and I was preparing to pay for my tuition. I drove to the bank to withdraw my money… when I got there, there was a line. So I waited. But once I retrieved the amount I needed, a man with a mask burst into the room. He took one look at me and raised a pistol to my forehead. He held out his hand, and I didn't know what to do. I started to give him the money, but a voice inside my head said; _you're really going to let your life go like this?_ And I answered myself, _no. I'm not._"

"What did you do?" Wario asked quietly, his eyes narrowed in concentration.

Smiling gruesomely, Angel replied, "I punched him in the throat. He was caught off guard, but I've never done anything close to fighting like that. Before long, he bested me. The pistol was to my head. I had no choice except to let him do with me what he would. He dragged me outside and knocked me unconscious—the last thing I heard was someone inside the bank shouting to call the police.

"But they didn't come on time. I woke up without the money in a dark alleyway. I couldn't find… never mind. Anyway—"

But Toadette was an inquisitive sort of person who either heard the whole story or nothing at all. Because of this, she interrupted, "No, tell us. What happened?"

"Believe me, you don't want to know," Angel murmured, hoping her friend would let the matter drop. "So I woke up—"

"Angel," interjected Mario. "What happened?" Hearing that two of the twelve had started to question her, the rest began to do so. Only one didn't say anything—Luigi was silent.

As their cries grew louder with increasing curiosity, Angel threw her hands up and screamed, "What am I supposed to say?! Am I supposed to tell you that the man who stole my life also took the one thing left that I could call mine, and that it's no big deal? He **_used_** me! I woke up in the dark alleyway without anything I had with me to the bank, including my clothes! Bruises were all over my body, bite marks on my neck, grip marks on my legs! You can imagine that **_that _**was left out of the news story! I never wanted anyone to know! And here you are asking, I didn't know what else to say—are you **_happy now?!_**"

The Crew immediately silenced themselves as Angel burst into tears. Seeing the damage they had just caused, they dared not move or say anything. No one knew how to comfort her as she dropped to the floor, holding her knees to her chest and burying her face in the folds of her aquamarine dress. Her sobs rang throughout the room, and without looking up she continued, "The robbery broke on the national news! I was left without any way of paying my tuition, and even the first down payment nearly bankrupted my family! There was no way I would be accepted back to Champlain, so I left and returned home. But before I did, it took a week, **_a full week_**_, _for Jake to muster the courage to say that he was breaking up with me! We had dated for three years, and after everything I had gone through, despite him saying he'd always be there for me, he left!

"Then Kyle told me something—he'd seen Jake with another girl in a room, more than once. He said the only reason he hadn't let me know before was because he thought we would work it out. Though Kyle was trying to help, he didn't know that that was what broke me.

"So I went back home for the summer, but there was no way I could continue with my future destroyed. I took as many sleeping pills as I could and woke up in the hospital three days later, wondering why I wasn't dead, why I had been saved. The third day in that place, I saw a jar of pills on the table beside me and I reached for it—in my hand were three dozen more of them. I didn't even know what they were for, but before I could swallow them, he came back.

"And he told me that hope was not lost, that something would come out of my life. He told me that as long as I remained true to myself, there would come a day that I would be glad I was alive. He was there for hours for me, and was patient and understanding the entire time… Finally, he convinced me to live, and I promised him I would try to continue on as normally as I could. Then he left… but only after he said that I would truly meet him someday."

She finally glanced up at the Crew, who felt ashamed of themselves as they saw the tear streaks on her face. Her eyes were red as she added with a hollow laugh, "I guess I have, then."

She couldn't continue her attempt at optimism, however, and she continued to cry.

Angel hid her head in her dress once more, but after a moment she felt a blanket being draped around her shoulders. Then there was a hand on her shoulder—Angel glanced up to see Luigi smiling sadly at her. A different arm wrapped around her shoulder: Peach's.

Then Toadette moved forward and took one of her hands. Next, it was Boo who gave her a napkin for her tears, and her favorite mango smoothie of Head Chef's. Yoshi followed with his puppy-like eyes and cheery smile… Soon, the rest of the Crew was crowded around her, all silently wishing her well again.

Wiping away the moisture from her face, Angel lifted her head. That was when she felt someone grasp her hand—turning, Angel found Peach smiling hopefully at her. There was a slight squeeze of encouragement.

Angel could say nothing except for, "Please tell me your side of the story now."

Seeing as she had more than upheld her part of the bargain, sighed Mario, "Where to begin…" his tone was slightly joking and caused Angel's lips to upturn slightly. As he thought seriously for a moment, he then said, "I suppose for when you come into play.

"About twenty-two years past, the hostility between the Stars and the Ztars—agents of Light and Dark respectively—was growing. We are on the side of the Stars, Angel, but things were not looking up for us. One day, our master and lead commander of the Stars was searching the universe, looking for something that could aid us in defending ourselves. He performed a complex spell that would lead him to the most influential light source in the entire universe… and the image that was revealed was of a sleeping baby.

"Naturally, he was astounded, and he called upon his advisor to ask her opinion on the matter. They conceived a plan to watch this girl and find out her special qualities that might just help us… they asked us to watch over her and gently guide her onto the path towards us.

"And so we appeared when you were ready—at seven years old, your imagination was extensive and your spirit was extraordinary. You believed us to be your friends immediately, which was what we needed. So we stayed beside you, but about twelve years ago, First Star called us for a meeting.

"He said that time was different for mortals, and that because of their strange beliefs, you would someday grow to mistrust us if we stayed… yet, he pointed out, if we left, it would leave you wondering about us for the rest of your life—yet another reason for why you would be searching for us.

"We didn't want to do it, but at last First Star ordered us to leave you on your thirteenth date of birth. Our spirits were diminished leaving you, for your outlook on things was always so bright. Your very existence strengthened us, Angel. It still does, and that is why we came to you. We need your help."

Shaking her head, asked she as a whisper, "How can I help you when I never knew about any of this? I cannot fight or fend for myself, and I have nothing to give you. I am no one."

"You are **_not_** no one," Luigi said with a certain sharpness. Seeing Angel's jump and puzzled look, he explained, "Out of everything and everyone in the entire universe, **_you_** were the one shown to us, Angelica Claire. You are somebody—if not to the side of Light, then to us."

For the first time since arriving in that cabin, Angel smiled. She was truly glad that Luigi was her friend, for the things he said always made her feel like she was different. Special, in a way—something she never was considered before.

"And that's all you've been told about me?" Angel asked. She was answered by nods and small smiles; almost automatically she turned to Luigi and Peach for the truth. They both did the same as their companions, though Angel noticed there was something troubling Luigi as he smiled. She wasn't sure how else to describe it.

Yet her attention was drawn to the others, who nodded in confirmation as small smiles were passed around. That was when Yoshi added, "All we've been told so far. There is more we have yet to uncover, however. Such as the way you can aid us with this war—believe it or not, a single person has the capability of ending the most brutal violence by herself."

Jarred by this statement, the aquamarine princess started somewhat and then smiled. Knowing that the Crew was there to help her, after all, Angel grinned shyly as if wondering whether it was okay. Seeing the attempt at joy, the others soon partook in the same trial.

That was when Dry Bones swung his legs off the desk and sauntered carelessly over to Angel. He took a swig from a bottle of red liquid—cherry Fanta, Angel guessed—and appraised her for some abnormal reason. Then, with an unusual amount of giddiness; "I like her. She's got spunk. And she's tough. Like me," he added thoughtfully. Then he hiccupped.

Angel burst into laughter upon realizing that the drink he was consuming was not Fanta at all. It was red wine. Based on the laughter going around, the Crew came to the same conclusion. Dry Bones then chortled and exclaimed, "Well, we didn't plan this party for nothing! Let's get a move on, chop-chop!" Pushing Angel out the door, he marched haughtily past her. Boo quickly followed, floating in crooked lines and squiggles for Angel's entertainment.

"Oh, goodness," Angel sighed as she watched the two supernatural beings amble away. "I'm worried about them."

"Why?" laughed Luigi beside her.

Shaking her head, she responded, "They're going to have a **_monster_** headache when they wake up tomorrow morning." They shared a bout of hilarity before Luigi glanced back at her with a teasing superiority—"And just how would **_you_** know that, my dear Angel?"

"Well, as it just so happens, my dear Luigi, I was driven blindfolded to a bar—courtesy of Arimay, of course—on my twenty-first birthday…" She didn't even have to finish the sentence before setting her friend to laughter once more. And though Angel was glad to make **_him_** smile for once, there was a nagging feeling that there was something wrong.

...

It was with heavy astonishment that the comment, "How is she fully healed already?! That lightning bolt should have put her out for at **_least_** a week!" was said. Then Bowser Jr. added with a pondering tone, "Perhaps the Toad Doctor's skills are getting better."

His father said nothing in reply. Though the little dragon had finally succeeded in convincing Bowser that he needed to spy on the Crew to create another master plan, it did not seem he was achieving satisfactory results. So it was with a slight scowl that Bowser Jr. turned back to his telescope, still gazing at the aquamarine girl down below.

"What's her name?" he then asked curiously.

Bowser, of course, was an evil mastermind and therefore had an uncanny skill to read lips. And since all the members of that abominable Crew called out to the girl every minute of the day, he was confident enough to answer, "Her name is Angelica. Angel. Whatever."

"I thought it was Alex."

"It's not."

"Well I thought it was."

Annoyed, shouted Bowser, "And I thought her name was Abigail, but it turns out neither of us knew every detail of the new recruit! If I knew everything, I would have ended the Crew a long time ago!" Scowling, he returned to his desk.

Minutes passed before he heard Bowser Jr. snicker from the balcony. He did not ask what had occurred, knowing that his son was likely to share anyway.

Bowser was proven right upon hearing, "It seems Daisy and Luigi are having a glaring contest. That's… oh, I don't know… the millionth time this week?" Bowser rolled his eyes seeing the look of concentration on his son's face so as he tried to determine the winner of the contest. "Mm, I believe this current contest ends in… a tie."

"That is irrelevant. I have seen them having a few minor discussions lately, but it's nothing I can manipulate to my advantage. Therefore, it is useless."

"Yeah. 'Minor discussions,'" Bowser Jr. repeated with a snigger, using air quotes around the last words. With a superior sigh, inquired he with a fair amount of haughtiness, "Obviously you don't know how to spy on people. In case you haven't noticed, you **_can_** manipulate this to your advantage. Just think outside the box a little."

Slightly intrigued but not willing to show it, said Bowser with careful control over his interest, "Why don't you get the plan started then, if you're so clever? Prove to me that you can become an evil genius too someday."

Seizing the opportunity to impress his father, huffed Bowser Jr., "Let's start with a little backstory. I've noticed that throughout this week, Luigi and Daisy have become a bit touchy. What else has happened this week, hmm…" he tapped his chin mockingly. Then, snapping his fingers, he exclaimed, "Oh, yeah! Angel came onboard! Pretty coincidental, don't you think?"

"How is this important?" asked Bowser slowly.

"I'm getting there. Anyway, this girl's arrival caused the feud on that there boat. From what I've gathered, Angel doesn't know she's in the middle of this because she's way too stinking innocent to see Daisy's jealousy. The others, however, all love the girl. They'd do anything for her—especially Luigi, considering what happened with her little electric stunt."

At Bowser Jr.'s words, a plan suddenly emerged in Bowser's head. As his son spoke, the puzzle suddenly made a perfect picture. Grinning evilly out of satisfaction, muttered Bowser, "So Mario will come up here to bring her back—"

"Hold up there, champ," Bowser Jr. interrupted. "You're getting ahead of the game. There's no way to guarantee Mario **_himself_** will join Luigi, but Luigi will **_definitely_** come. That's when we end **_him,_** don't you see?"

With a huff of exasperation, Bowser rolled his eyes. "I don't want to kill Luigi. My orders were to end Mario. You know this as well as I." Thinking there was nothing more to say, he turned only to hear his son's taunting, "I'm not finished yet."

Bowser Jr. waited until he had the attention of his father before continuing. "Now then. It's obvious why you've failed taking on Mario directly. Luigi is always there to help, isn't he? So eliminate **_him_** from the equation, and Mario is found without his right hand man. This makes the balance shift in **_your_** favor. This problem just requires a little more… thinking." This last was said with a justified smirk. Bowser chose to ignore it.

All the same, he could not deny he was impressed by how well his son had thought out such a plan. Sharing the leer with Bowser Jr., Bowser then began to think of a way to put his new and improved plan into place.


	8. Chapter 7

As Angel suspected, the party held in honor of her not dying lasted until nearly dawn. In fact, quite a number of them decided even after she retired for bed they would continue to play "Pop the Bottle," talk, eat, and simply have more fun. But although the princess had had lots of merriment with her friends, she decided it got a little **_too_** crazy once Boo shouted, "Dusk till dawn, let's riidddee!"

He had started sharing the bottle with Dry Bones, in other words.

Retreating to the silence and tranquility of her cabin, Angel fell asleep with a smile upon her face at the memories of the night.

Yet that smile was not meant to last.

_"__I love you, Angel…"_

_ "__Jake was with Chloe. I walked in on him about a month ago. I thought you were going to work it out, if I had known, I would have told you sooner!"_

_ "__You'll never have to be without me, Gel. I'll always be here for you."_

_ "__I love you, Gel…"_

Angel woke up screaming another four hours later. The sound was filled with desperation and anger, emotions of betrayal and pain welling up inside her just as they had three years beforehand. Shooting upright, Angel was drenched in a cold sweat. As the memories flooded through her mind, she shook herself and grabbed a shawl before bursting out the door.

Outside, she calmed only slightly seeing the stars above her. They twinkled comfortingly in the night sky, yet their beauty was not marveled at as they normally would have been. Recollections of the week leading to the day she took the pills ambushed her; from Kyle's pleads for forgiveness and Jake's nickname for her. Angel felt sick. She wished to be free from the burden that she would never be able to let go of.

For a while Angel paced the deck in front of the cabins, paying no heed to the time of night. Though it was four in the morning, Boo and Dry Bones were still singing merrily—they had had **_way _**too much drink by that time. It did not bring her laughter like it had six hours previously, however.

Ten minutes she remained outside with the white shawl around her shoulders. The sun's light was nonexistent, causing for much of the warmth she had known during the day to have disappeared. As she tightened the flimsy cloth around, Angel felt a thicker blanket placed around her shoulders… she almost didn't notice, except the person behind her whispered, "Get some rest, Angel."

Whirling around, she saw no one there… yet she had been certain someone was there. Had she been less frazzled, she would have noticed the person walking away, hidden by the shadows. But her eyes were wide and her vision distorted, so she saw no one.

Pulling the blanket she'd been given around her so it covered all her body, Angel was grateful for the warmth and the words. Calming herself, she remained for another minute before returning to bed, praying that memories would not come back to haunt her sleep.

Her wishes were answered that night. Until nine in the morning she slept soundly, but then she awoke upon hearing a knock at the door. Yet still she did not stir… at least, she didn't until hearing the quiet, "Angel?" at her door.

Rising, she called, "Come in." The sound was muffled by the blanket around her shoulders and face.

Toadette bounded into the room, a smile lighting her face. Seeing Angel was all right and simply sleeping, asked she, "Where were you this morning? Everyone is waiting for you!"

"Boo and Dry Bones too?" she asked in amazement.

Toadette giggled and said, "No, they're getting aspirin from the staff."

"I warned them! I warned them not to drink too much! That's what they get for not listening!" Angel called out in triumph, burying herself deeper under the covers of her bed. Her euphoria at being right quickly diminished, and she pulled the blanket up over her face again, moaning out of exhaustion.

Though she laughed at the lethargy in Angel's appearance, a troubled scowl came over Toadette's face. "Why is that one blue?"

"What?"

"The blanket. It's blue. That's weird. Oh well," Toadette pointed out cheerily before calling, "See you at breakfast!" and bouncing back towards the dining hall.

At first, her words made no sense to Angel, whose brain was still much too slow to register more than Toadette had woken her up. It took a couple minutes for her to realize that the mushroom gal had said something about a blue blanket.

Angel grabbed a fistful of the covers around her. True to her friend's word, it was blue instead of aquamarine. Remembering that she had woken the previous night and heard someone whispering her name, telling her to return to sleep, the princess only murmured, "Luigi," before falling back on her bed.

She couldn't keep back a small smile. _I should've known_. She knew his voice well enough by that time to know she was right.

Realizing afterward that it was time to get up and join the others, Angel yawned and stretched before sliding out of bed. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she blinked once or twice upon seeing an envelope on the floor.

For a moment she daintily turned the envelope between her fingers. There was no sort of inscription on the envelope. Wondering what it was for, Angel rolled her eyes upon thinking that it was some sort of practical joke from the specters—bracing herself for a random spout of Fanta or red wine to come shooting up at her, she was surprised to see that inside the envelope there wasn't anything of the sort. It was just a letter.

Frowning slightly, Angel unfolded the note and stared at it for a moment or two.

_Go home. Or else._

Angel couldn't believe her eyes. She wondered if **_this _**was a joke from Boo and Dry Bones when they had been too drunk to realize it might've been hurtful. She decided to go to the dining hall to ask about it… she found it hard to believe it was a **_real _**threat.

She wore a smile as she went to the dining hall. As Toadette had said, everyone seemed to be waiting for her—it was with an exasperated, "Finally!" that the mushroom girl bounced over and ushered Angel in her saved seat.

Seeing everyone's merriment, Angel could not bring herself to talk about the note. For twenty minutes or so the others talked and laughed about new jokes created the last night—Boo and Dry Bones were grumbling about how their headaches. Even so, Angel's stupor returned as she felt the cold piece of paper in her hands.

At last, Luigi seemed to notice that she wasn't as cheery as usual. Of course, he had noticed earlier, along with Toadette, but hadn't said anything, believing it to be sleepiness. But the confusion in her eyes clearly labeled a problem, and so he said, "What's the matter, Angel?"

She started from her thoughts and grinned sheepishly, shaking her head. But Toadette and Luigi persisted until at last Angel sighed and held up the white envelope. Waving it in the air, she answered, "This."

"What is it?" asked Toadette. Angel's response had captured the attention of the others, halting their joyousness.

"A practical joke, I think," she said without confidence. "I'm guessing it might've been Boo or Dry Bones last night while they were still drinking or something… but… I can't be sure." Her puzzlement was palpable.

Finally, questioned Mario, "What does it say?"

Looking sideways at him, Angel only shook her head. All the same, she gingerly opened the envelope and took out the paper within. Glancing once more at the fancy squiggles forming four threatening words, she handed it to him.

Mario immediately scowled, anger dominating his eyes. Whether he meant to or not he grabbed the paper so hard it almost ripped—upon hearing the silence around him and knowing the others wanted to know what was written, he read aloud, "Go home. Or else."

Now the silence was so complete, the waves outside could be heard, which had never been done before. Each person thought about the words printed neatly in cursive; soon it was being passed around. Many didn't believe Mario until they saw the letter for themselves.

"Who would do something like this?" Peach whispered in horror, glancing at all her comrades. Her eyes fell on Boo and Dry Bones and she opened her mouth to shout at them.

Waving their hands empathetically, they shouted, "It wasn't us! It wasn't us! We may have had too much, but we still remember everything!" It seemed they were telling the truth, and Angel noted how much hate and repulsion was in their gaze as they stared at the paper.

"Then who was it?" asked Peach, helplessness staining her voice. "Why?"

"Do we even know if it's someone in this room?" asked Toad.

"I don't know," Angel murmured. "It could be someone of the staff or another enemy of yours that's closer by."

Shaking his head, said Luigi, "We don't have any other enemies besides Bowser and his minions. There's no way he could've gotten onto this ship, either, unless his powers have increased. We've seen to that." His tone was hard and cold, marred only by a sliver of worry. Angel could see the snarl beginning to spread across his face looking at the note in his hands. "It must've been someone on this ship," he added with venom, throwing the thing onto the table.

Everyone immediately glared at one another, trying to deduce who the disturber of the peace was. Suspicious looks could be found all around the table—some eyes immediately flicked to Wario, some to Boo and Dry Bones… but soon those gazes would turn over to others seeing the innocence in their faces.

"Enough," said Angel shakily. This drew all the eyes on her. "I don't know who it was. Maybe the staff, maybe someone else. But whoever it was, if you're in here…" She paused to reach for the note on the table.

Glancing at it one last time, she ripped it up, throwing the last bits of paper down onto the table and not giving it another glance.

"There," she said triumphantly. "I'm not leaving now. Not when I know what's been going on. Not when I've made friends with each and every one of you—besides, I still need to figure out who you are, you person of saving lives. And even when I **_am _**told, if you would have me, I would stay."

Shouts of relief and of acceptance rang all around her, clamoring for her to yes, **_please _**stay!

Laughing at their enthusiasm, Angel could only say, "Guess I'm staying, then," before she was swept away by the crowd. Only two people didn't participate in swarming her: Luigi, who was smiling warmly even as she was mobbed towards the Star Pad, and Daisy, who managed to slip around the other way.

...

The next five days whizzed by without anyone noticing. Such partying naturally caused a lot of exhaustion, however, and Angel could often be found napping when the others were not celebrating. When Toad, Yoshi, Boo, and Dry Bones pulled an all-nighter, Angel groaned the following morning, "You guys, I could hardly sleep! How do you **_do _**it?!"

"You'll get used to it, seeing as you're staying!" replied Yoshi in a sing-song voice. His euphoria at hearing Angel's response to the letter had not diminished—nor had it, she noticed, with the rest of the Crew.

It turned out she wasn't the only one constantly exhausted, however. Angel had Daisy to keep her company whenever she wanted to get off on her own sometimes. They would often talk, but Daisy's appearance got steadily worse. She was very pale now with dark circles under her eyes as if she never got **_any _**sleep. It worried Angel, but Daisy would only smile and say, "I'm fine," despite the clear evidence that she was not.

And so Angel would retreat back to the lulling peace of her cabin.

On the morning of the fifteenth day on the cruise ship, Angel woke up with a migraine from all the noise the previous night. Moaning, she rose and stumbled towards the dining hall, where she pleadingly inquired for some pain-reliever. Luckily there was some left, and she joined Mario, Yoshi, and Toadette at one of the tables with a soft _thump!_

"Headache?" asked Mario without looking up from his book.

"Mm-hm," she mumbled, the sound of confirmation muffled from her head in her arms.

"That seems to happen with the newcomers after a while."

"Mm-hm."

Gradually the others began pouring into the dining hall like usual, and everyone tried to help Angel with her migraine. Unfortunately, what with the clamor they were making as they attempted to help her, it only made things worse—Luigi finally came to her rescue upon telling them this quietly, reminding them of how she was at the hospital wing while she was first waking up.

She gave him a grateful smile before burying her head back in her arms.

While the Crew rallied off for another day of loud partying, Angel stalked off to get out of the range of obnoxiousness. Though she was searching for a good bench to lie on, that proved to be difficult, seeing as she still didn't know her way around too terribly well and couldn't really think straight.

"Too much up there?" she heard at last. Turning, she saw Luigi smile a little and say, "I know what you're thinking. It gets too much for even me sometimes."

"Well, out of all of the Crew members here, you and Mario seem, well… the most grounded."

He laughed then and said, "Come on. I know a place you can sleep without having to worry about Boo or Dry Bones pouring soda on you to wake you up."

With a hopeless smirk, asked Angel, "How is **_that _**possible?"

"Let's just say that some of the cruise ship's uncovered secrets aren't well known," Luigi replied. Seeing her intrigue, he began to lead her towards a place Angel had not yet traveled to. She attempted to soak in all the new passageways and which door led where, but it proved to be difficult.

At last they reached a utility closet, where Angel's expression grew a little scornful. "A closet?" she asked, bemused.

"A-ha, but that is what you say now," said Luigi with a devious smile, wagging a finger reprovingly in her direction. He moved to the silver doorknob and flipped open a small silver latch. Underneath the knob there was a button which he pressed; there was a slight rumbling. Then he opened the door and said, "After you," to an astonished Angel.

She walked inside an open garden and instantly knew this was the escape she had been looking for. Underneath her feet grass grew happily, and flowers bloomed in unimaginable size and color. The sky was a beautiful blue, the sun warming her with its gentle rays.

"What was that you were saying earlier?"

"Nothing," replied Angel breathlessly. "Nothing at all."

With a lilt suggesting laughter, said Luigi, "That's what I thought."

"Who else knows this is here?" asked the princess, staring at everything around her. She drew close to a violet and smiled, knowing that she would constantly return to tend to the plants as well as escape from the rowdy celebrators.

"I can count it off on my fingers," he mused with satisfaction. "You, me, Mario, and Peach. We're all that knows it's here."

Surprised that he showed her this so quickly, Angel was thankful for the opportunity. At his insistence she lay down on the grass to look up at the sky—the angle the sun was in cast a golden glow over all in sight. Sighing in contentment, said she, "Thank you for showing me this. It's so beautiful… how did you find it?"

With a nostalgic laugh, said he, "Let's just say Toadsworth was getting rather unhappy with all the trouble Mario and I had been getting into a while back…"

Giggling, Angel closed her eyes and managed to issue another thanks before stifling a yawn and falling asleep. It seemed that although she had only closed her eyes for a couple minutes, when next she awoke the sun was on the opposite side of the sky.

Astounded, she shot upward, and not just because she had been sleeping from ten in the morning until six at night. It was because the others were calling for her—and they sounded panicked.

Beside her, Luigi was asleep as well. She really didn't want to wake him, but the way the Crew was screaming for her and Luigi made her nervous. So it was reluctantly that she called, "Luigi! The others!"

Darting up instantly, he rushed to the side of the garden. Glancing out to the Crew below them, when he turned back to face Angel, his face was pale and his fists clenched. "You said…" he began with visible effort, "You said you weren't leaving!"

"I'm not!" she replied, horrified. Rushing towards him, she leaned out the railing to find out that the cruise ship was, for some abnormal reason, docked back in the same harbor in Florida. Gasping, Angel cried out, "No! What is going on?"

"They think you're leaving," he whispered, shaking his head. Not even waiting for her to come over her shock, he grabbed her hand and muttered, "Come on. We have to show them they're wrong."

Throwing the door shut behind her, Angel sprinted alongside Luigi as they descended two staircases and around three corners to reach the rest of the Crew still calling Angel's name. Toadette was the first to notice they had arrived, and she screamed once before darting over to her and enveloping her in a monster hug.

Hearing her sounds of relief, the rest of the Crew whirled around to see Angel, Luigi, and Toadette just behind them. Peach and Birdo had similar reactions to Toadette's, and for a moment Angel was completely obscured from view. When, however, she was allowed to breathe again, said Angel, "Why would you think I was leaving? I told you I wouldn't!"

"You were gone! All day!" exclaimed Dry Bones, allowing for his concern to show for once. "We thought... we were afraid that you were going to leave us."

Shaking her head, said the princess, "No. I'm staying as long as you'll have me. I don't know why we're here, though. I thought you said we only stop on Earth once every six months!" Angel added to Mario and Peach, both of whom looked relieved to see her.

But remembering the problem at hand, they both nodded and scowled, apparently just as puzzled as everyone else.

As everyone switched theories and concerns, Wario's voice could be heard from one of the railings overlooking the dock. "Uh, guys? You **_might _**want to take a look at this…"

Everyone moved towards him as he pointed down. It took a moment for the Crew to focus on what was below, but when they saw it, mixed emotions were passed around—Toadette smiled, Boo narrowed his eyes, and Luigi had a blank, unreadable expression.

A man was making his way onto the boat. Dressed in an orange graphic Star Wars tee and dark jeans, he had an attractive mop of dirty-blond hair and the brownest eyes anyone had ever known. The way he smiled and looked around portrayed him as relaxed and easy-going; though most people were surprised he had arrived, the Crew saw no reason to not accept him.

"Who **_is _**that?" pondered Birdo, a lilt in her voice. Her eyes were appraising the man skeptically at first, but heeding his sharp features, that was replaced by slight intrigue. Yoshi noticed and scowled.

"I don't like him," he responded without answering her question.

"No idea," replied Toad, scowling at the guy somewhat. He did not have qualms with his arrival, but curiosity spread throughout him.

Angel could only stare at the man below. Her eyes did not move from his face; she could not breathe. Her fingers gripped the railing so hard her knuckles—if they weren't covered by gloves—would've been white. As she watched the man draw nearer to a staircase leading him towards them, her face grew paler and paler, her eyes widening and her lips parting as if to form a small shriek.

The others did not yet notice. It took a moment for Mario to notice Angel's state, and he nudged Peach and Luigi, gesturing subtly towards her. None of them knew what to say.

"Angel, are you all right?" asked Luigi at last, his tone edged with wariness. The others heard him and stopped their conversations to look at her.

She visibly swallowed and shook her head. "Fine."

"Are you sure?" asked Dry Bones dubiously. "You're looking as gray as me."

Angel was not provided a chance to reply, for just then footsteps echoed up from the stairs. The others turned around as the man came into view, but Angel did not… The visitor stopped short at the sight of the Crew—seeing as it was the first time he saw them—but then he smiled and said, "Hi. Uh, I don't know if… this is A-12, right? I might be lost. Wouldn't be the first time."

"Yes, this is A-12," Peach replied slowly, glancing at the man strangely. "How did you… I mean, what brought you here?"

The man frowned, which enhanced his already pronounced features. His dark eyes glittered out of puzzlement as he responded, "Not quite sure. I got a tip saying I should come here. I just thought, 'Hey, why not?' and decided to see if this was a sort of joke or whether it was serious. I was in town visiting my cousins anyway. So… where am I, exactly?"

"A tip?" repeated Waluigi skeptically. He wasn't sure if he liked this guy.

Nodding in answer, the guy responded, "Pretty much. I'm Jake, by the way. Nice to meet you."

"Jake," whispered Luigi under his breath. Then he remembered—_But before I did, it took a week, __**a full week**__, for Jake to muster the courage to say that he was breaking up with me!_

"Angel," he then said louder, everything making sense at once. The rest of the Crew faced him in confusion—"Do you know anyone named Angel?" he directed towards Jake.

Jake blanched and began to stammer. "How did… she… I…"

"Who did this?" Mario asked louder, glaring around the Crew. He understood what his brother was talking about; he too recalled Angel's story. "That note she got. We will find you."

"Wait—what?" exclaimed Jake, holding his hands up in surrender. "Hold on—why did you ask me about Angel? I mean, yeah, I knew her. A while back. It's been about three years since I last saw her, but…" he trailed off as he caught sight of the girl in the aquamarine dress, still facing away from him.

Silence took over.

"Gel?" he whispered softly, taking a slow step in the girl's direction.

Angel whirled around, her face streaked with tears. Her bright blue eyes were lined with red as her mouth was still open in shock. But her lips then pressed together as she balled her fists and stood defiantly in front of him.

"Jake," she replied calmly. "Been a while."

Shaking his head, he replied, "I never thought I'd see you again."

"Neither did I," responded she. Then, her expression hardening, snarled Angel, "I should've known that would've been too much to hope for." Then she whipped around the corner, brutally pushing aside anyone who stood in front of her.

"Angel—" he called after her, but he thought the better of it and let her be. After she was gone, Jake's eyes found the floor, and everyone could tell he was astonished to find her on the ship. A moment passed before he asked, "How long has she been here?"

"A little less than three weeks," replied Peach softly, glancing sideways at Jake. "How did you know her again?"

Glancing after Angel hopelessly, he replied almost inaudibly, "She used to be my girlfriend. I didn't think I would ever see her again, not after what happened…"

More silence enveloped the deck. Many decided they didn't like this Jake character that had caused Angel so much pain these past years—this Jake character who **_still _**caused her pain. Eyes narrowed as they recalled the note Angel had been given the previous morning… it truly **_was _**a threat, and the culprit remained unknown.

"I just can't believe she's here," Jake said at last, looking up from the floor. "How did she find you?"

"It was an accident, really," Daisy informed him, something edging her tone. It was craftily hidden, but Luigi could sense it was there. "She sort of boarded the wrong cruise ship and found us. We figured she might as well stay here for the six months she'll be here." With this last sentence Luigi finally figured out what laced her tone.

It was anger.

Jake heard something strange, too.

"You," he mumbled quietly. Daisy's smile grew fixed. "I've heard your voice before. Call me crazy, but… it sounds like it was your voice that told me to come here." A pause, and then—

"Well, you're not wrong," Luigi muttered darkly. Daisy's flash of panic betrayed her. "But believe me when I say… she's really done a **_lot _**more than that."

Seeing the rage in his eyes, Daisy took a step back. As the rest of the Crew digested what he was saying, they all glared malevolently at her too, certain now that everything Angel had been forced to go through was Daisy's fault. It had been her threatening Angel, her bringing Jake on board solely for the purpose that Daisy disliked her.

The only thing that baffled them was why.

Jake noticed the sudden burst of hostility and held up his hands again. "Hey, if you want, I can leave…"

"No, no," Peach said quickly, knowing that if he left he could very well reveal the existence of the Crew. "You should definitely stay with us for a while. It might just… take a bit for us to adjust. We aren't used to having a lot of new people like yourself and Angel around."

This last, of course, was a lie. But Jake grinned and said, "Are you sure?" only to hear the Crew's agreement with Peach. After all, the guy himself hadn't done anything bad to them… yet. All they feared for with his arrival was Angel's well-being.

Sensing all the hatred being shot towards her, Daisy gave Jake a sunny smile and said, "Come on, Jake, I'll show you around!" With that, he walked alongside her as she led him around the corner, seemingly smiling and happy with his arrival. And though he smiled as well and began talking brightly with Daisy, Jake did not know that the yellow princess was also leaving to escape the glares of those whom she might not be allowed to call friends any longer.

As they walked away, the rest of the Crew stood still out of shock, wondering the same question.


	9. Chapter 8

Nearly ten minutes passed before the Crew was able to recover from their surprised and angry silence. The expressions of the eleven remaining varied from anger to confusion to nothingness. At last, however, life stirred from within them and Luigi was the first to speak.

"I'm going to have a little **_talk _**with her," he growled menacingly.

"Let me help you with that," added Wario, his black eyes narrowed still.

"Why would Daisy **_do _**such a thing?" asked Toadette, her vivacity diminished. Out of uneasiness she twiddled with her braids, her own questions giving her a headache.

No one had a response. Then, with nonverbal consent, the Crew stalked off to their own doings, no longer in a celebratory mood. Each had Angel and Jake's arrival on their minds, and none knew what to think of it.

Peach sat down on one of the deck's many benches, her head in her hands as she struggled to think about the layered complications of Daisy's plan. She watched the staff go by as time passed, and eventually she heard someone else draw near.

"Mind if I join you?" asked Mario, sitting down anyway. Peach smiled slightly and said nothing, seeing as he had practically read her mind. "What's bothering you?"

Peach gave him a look.

"Well, obviously…" he muttered, causing for Peach to laugh, a sound he was glad to hear. But then she frowned again. "I just don't know why. If only we could find out, but Daisy has never been an easy person to read."

"And she isn't going to start now," sighed Mario, who was also still caught up on the whole Daisy/Jake/Angel scheme. But even as he thought, he figured he was overlooking something. There was another player in that game that he hadn't thought of yet. Closing his eyes, he looked back on all the times the Crew had spent as a whole together, thinking of their individual encounters with Angel. He thought of the people Angel had gotten to know best: Toadette, Luigi, Peach, himself—

Toadette. Luigi. Peach. Himself.

Scratch Toadette. Scratch Peach.

Scratch himself.

Luigi.

He was certain of it now.

"There's another side to this coin," Mario murmured quietly, knowing Peach would very much appreciate his new discovery. "Angel isn't on a side by herself. She hasn't done anything to Daisy directly. At least, I don't believe she has."

As he expected, Peach looked up and glanced at him sideways. Giving him a puzzled look, she asked, "You think so?" Seeing his nod, a small smile lit her face as she whispered, "How do you reckon? There can't be a crime without a motive."

"That's what I'm trying to think of now," replied Mario, a grimace on his face. Peach returned to the labyrinth of her brain to assist him, but nothing surfaced on either of their behalves for a while.

At last, Peach gasped and clapped her hands together. Startled by the sudden gesture, Mario jumped somewhat and glanced at her. "You could've at least given me a warning."

Peach ignored him and said, "I think Daisy's jealous."

"Jealous?" questioned Mario incredulously. "Of what? Why?"

"You know Angel's gotten to know everyone really well. She's been hanging around all of us, and we all love her…" Mario waited for her to get to the actual point. "And I don't think Daisy appreciates that. You know how territorial she gets about her friends and the others whom she loves. So naturally, she isn't very happy upon seeing Angel and Luigi together, now, is she? I mean, is Daisy really going to let this newcomer stand in the way of those whom she loves? That's her thinking most of the time, isn't it?"

Piecing it together, Mario asked, "So she's just… jealous?"

"Not quite," added Peach vaguely. "Daisy is one to think of the future and how a certain path can affect her. If Angel and can influence us **_now,_** think of what Angel could do to Luigi and I in these next few months! We all adore Angel a lot more than we admit. And… oh, who am I kidding? Haven't you noticed they're always together? Luigi and Angel are best friends already—for crying out loud, she's saved his life! And haven't you noticed—"

"How he's changed? Yes," Mario interrupted, his eyes widening. "How does this relate to what could happen in the future?" he asked afterward.

"Gah!" shouted Peach, throwing her hands in the air. She leaped off the bench and began pacing the deck, rolling her eyes as she muttered, "**_Boys… _**they don't see what's right in front of their faces sometimes…"

"Hey!"

"Don't you **_see?!_**" she exclaimed. "It's as plain as the Star on the ship!"

Mario thought for a second. Two seconds. He put together all the pieces of the puzzle of Daisy's scheme, the threat she left Angel, the way she thought about how Angel influenced all those around her, and the way she responded to such differences Angel had caused in her life.

A sudden dawning came over him. "No. Way."

Peach absolutely lost it. "I knew it! Oh, I always knew it! This is so exciting! Haven't you seen it! How have we **_not?! _** I always knew it! Hah!" Her excitement startled Mario—he hadn't seen her like this ever since Boo and Dry Bones pulled the standard _here-have-some-Sprite-oops-it's-whiskey _prank on her three years beforehand.

Leaping up, he grabbed her flailing wrists and forced her to calm down. It took a minute, but at last he dropped her wrists at her sides and said slowly, "Peach. We don't know this yet."

Disgust came over her face.

"Don't say that! You're ruining it! Besides, it's the only explanation we can think of! Haven't you seen what he's like now? He's never been this way. Angel's changed him more than we knew before. Daisy's seen it, of course she has. She thinks… she knows… Luigi's in love with Angel!" Peach began positively twirling out of joy. "Ha-ha! This is amazing…"

Shaking his head, muttered Mario, "Either you're going crazy, or Dry Bones spiked your coffee…"

Peach didn't pay attention to him, seeing as she was still much too excited to do more than spin and sing.

Rolling his eyes as his girlfriend continued spinning, twirling, and eventually making herself dizzy, sighed Mario, "Yep. Dry Bones spiked your coffee…" before rising and heading off to the dining hall where he might be able to find a few others of the Crew.

...

Meanwhile, Angel had rushed back off to her cabin. Locking the door behind her, she slipped into Peach's room and left in search of a good hiding place. She did not wish to be seen by anyone for a while, at least until the whole Jake's arrival thing was settled down. She wished for some peace. Undoubtedly her new friends would be trying to comfort her, and Angel wasn't quite sure she could handle their sympathy at the moment.

Thinking of all the places she could run to on the ship, Angel stopped short realizing she hadn't really been shown many secret hiding spots yet. She then remembered the garden Luigi had brought her to earlier that very day.

"It's too predictable…" she murmured. But then she found somewhere else that was **_not. _**

Grinning at her own cleverness, Angel hustled off, careful to take paths where no voices could be heard. She darted past the Star Pad. Luckily, no one was there. At first she wondered why before realizing—the Crew might not be looking for her just yet. Undoubtedly they were all off trying to figure out the sudden turn of events… Angel guessed she probably had a couple hours to herself before they would start calling her name again.

She reached the supposed closet Luigi had led her to. But instead of opening the silver latch on top of the doorknob, she simply opened the door and entered the closet, knowing that only three others of the Crew could possibly find her there.

For a while she was undisturbed, sitting on top of a wooden box as she sifted through all her thoughts. She still couldn't believe the threat in the note she had received was genuine—and who was the culprit? What had she done to make that person angry with her?

At first, Angel was afraid it might've been the person who'd stayed with her, because he was afraid of revealing himself to her.

_But no, they all promised me I would know. It wouldn't make sense…_

And so she returned to the stupor, scowling as she thought.

Two hours passed and she had not moved nor even thought of leaving the safety of her little supply closet. Angel was just about to congratulate herself on the success of her hiding spot when the door opened—"You know, that was a good try."

Gasping, her head jerked up to find Mario grinning at her.

"I'm not kidding," he added sincerely. "No one could find you for a while. But then Luigi told me he'd shown you this, and I know you're smarter than to return to the exact spot you were in earlier…"

"Gee, thanks," Angel replied sourly. "I suppose you're going to tell me that I should get up and have some dinner with Jake and the rest of the Crew now?"

Shaking his head, contemplated Mario thoughtfully, "No, not necessarily. I just wanted to make sure you're still on the ship, is all. You aren't going to leave because of this, are you?" he added with a bit of worry.

Sighing, responded Angel, "I don't know, Mario. I don't know what's going on here. Who threatened me? If they're going to keep doing stuff like this then I have no idea what I'll be reduced to at the end of these six months."

Mario's smile grew fixed, like he knew something she didn't. "That's something I have no doubt you'll figure out on your own," he answered cryptically. "Just remember, Angel. We're here for you."

Laughing bitterly, said the aquamarine princess, "Obviously someone's not."

"That someone is going to have to get over it," he said sharply. The tone of voice caused for Angel to look up. She was just in time to see the flash of disgust run through his eyes.

"You know who it is," she said, jolting up and ultimately hitting her head on a wooden shelf above her. Rubbing her head, she moaned, "Ow…" Then, remembering the problem at hand, pleaded she, "Tell me!"

"I'll let you figure it out for yourself. Trust me—the way things are going on this ship, you won't have to wait for long." With a last hopeful smile, he put the door ajar and left, allowing for Angel to remain there and gather her thoughts.

Ten minutes passed as she wondered whether she should leave her hidey-hole. Deciding at last that it was probably late in the evening and that the only people at the dining hall would be Yoshi and Boo at this time—or so she hoped—Angel decided to get up.

Besides, she was hungry.

Carefully Angel proceeded down the hallways. She would warily check the corridors to make sure no-one unwelcome would be down those passageways. She was rather lucky; in no time at all she was at the dining hall.

Sure enough, Yoshi and Boo were there. They, however, were so enwrapped in a fruit kabob that they didn't notice her enter. So she grabbed a plate and piled some salad and fruit on it and sat away from them, hoping they wouldn't ask her where she was.

They didn't. They seemed to be respecting her wishes, which comforted her. After a swift supper, she walked outside to where the stars were glittering brightly in the night sky. A thick black blanket hung over her head, and in the distance Angel could see the full moon.

She listened to the comforting sound of rushing waves… then a roar of laughter crashed into her ears.

Glaring up at the sound, Angel rolled her eyes realizing that the majority of the Crew was back to what they did best. Partying.

She, however, had absolutely **_no _**desire to follow their lead. Instead, Angel wished for a peaceful stroll so as to spend more blissful moments alone. Besides, Jake would most certainly be up where everyone was partying, seeing as his arrival was probably the cause for such festivities.

Sighing, she moved away. Angel glided around corridors, trying to find out where she could get the best view of Pegasus. It had always been her favorite constellation—if she turned left here, the whole thing might just be visible to her…

More voices.

Angel bristled.

Around the next corner, Angel could hear two hushed yet intense voices. Although they were not nearly as loud as their celebrating brethren on the other side of the ship, their voices still distracted her from her stargazing and therefore irked her.

She was just about to shout, "Go Party somewhere else!" before figuring out that these two voices weren't happy. Nor were they inquisitive or astounded.

They were angry.

Angel stopped short, wondering just what people could be arguing about **_this _**time.

"GO AWAY!" she heard one voice shriek suddenly. With a start, Angel realized it was Daisy. Angel froze in place and listened to the racking sobs that were audible from where she stood—footsteps leading away from the argument could be heard.

Wondering what happened, Angel darted around the corner.

And again she froze at the sight in front of her—Daisy was kneeling in the middle of the deck, her elbows resting against her legs as her hands cradled her head. She was sobbing uncontrollably, despair leeching from her. When Daisy lifted her gloves, Angel could see they were very damp.

"Daisy?" Angel asked at once, cautiously walking one step closer as if afraid of being told off. Far from doing that, Daisy didn't even look her direction; asked Daisy, "What are you doing here?"

"I was walking, and I heard voices," Angel replied, taking another step closer. Seeing as Daisy wasn't doing anything to stop her, she knelt and offered her a hand. Daisy didn't take it. Still refusing to make eye contact with Angel, murmured she, "What did you hear?"

"Nothing, really. I just heard you shout 'go away…' Who did this?" Angel whispered, wondering just who was so heartless as to render one of their friends like this.

_The same person who was so heartless as to render __**me **__like this… _she answered herself. Bristling, Angel said, "Who was it? Obviously they're trying to botch up the whole **_Crew, _**seeing as first they attacked me, then you…"

Apparently, this was not the right thing to say, because Daisy erupted into a fresh wave of tears. Panicky, Angel wasn't quite sure how to comfort her friend. "No, no! I mean that together, we can make everything right again! We just have to tell the rest of the Crew…" she trailed off seeing her words weren't making much of an impact.

For a moment Angel remained silent, watching in helplessness as her friend cried into her dress. Then she found she couldn't hold back any longer. "What **_is _**the matter, Daisy?" she asked gently.

Daisy exploded with grief. "Everyone I love is leaving me! The girl who was my best friend and practically my sister hates me now, as does the man whom I've come to know as a brother! Toadette won't speak to me—" Angel knew enough about Toadette to know this was a big deal—"And neither will anyone else!"

"Even Luigi?" whispered Angel incredulously.

Daisy froze. For the first time, she glanced up at Angel. Then with a deep breath, Daisy nodded. "Even **_he_** left me."

Angel inhaled sharply, gazing all around for signs of movement. She did not wish for Daisy or herself to be overheard. "Why?"

There was no response, and Angel wondered if perhaps that was something Daisy just couldn't answer. She tried to amend it by saying, "Hey, it's okay, you don't have to tell me…" but Daisy had finally stopped crying. She glared up at Angel.

"Why?" she repeated menacingly. "Why he left me, or why **_everyone _**did?"

Shaking her head, replied Angel, carefully evading the question, "You don't have to tell me. It was personal—I'm sorry—"

"No! Go ahead and ask me my whole life story!" Daisy suddenly shrieked. "I guess that since I was the one to send you that stupid note, everyone automatically assumes I'm a heartless bitch! So I might as well tell you; I brought Jake here! I sent you that note! Why?! Because ever since you've arrived here, everyone has been leaving me! You've **_ruined _**my life by showing up here—why couldn't you just board another ship?! Why couldn't you just—go—**_home?!_**"

Angel stopped short. As Daisy's sobs racked her body, Angel's heart seemed frozen in place. Where compassion had previously reigned for the person Angel had come to know as a friend, anger took over.

"What have I ever done to you?" she asked timidly. Yet as she proceeded, Angel's voice rose into a desperate anger. "I'm sorry for being told to come here! Excuse me if making a mistake is suddenly inexcusable! I haven't done **_anything _**to you—why did you have to target me? Why did you bring Jake here?! Didn't you hear what he did to me?!"

At last the princesses stopped breathing heavily. Though tears still leaked out of her eyes, said Daisy with an evil glare, "You stole my love. And I figured that if I was to have been brought such pain, the **_least _**I could do in return was supply you with that same heartache!"

Out of fury Daisy's fists began to glow—Angel gasped and stumbled backwards as one of them was pointed towards her heart. The light emitting from the laser increased until it was almost blinding…

"**_No!_**"

Suddenly Daisy's arm was wrenched back away from Angel. There was a glaring flash of a pale yellow light, a soft groan following it. All the girls could register was that someone else had come up and taken the shot that was meant to be Angel's.

Daisy readjusted to the light faster than Angel did. "No! No!" she screamed, falling down beside the deck. "I didn't mean—I'm so sorry—"

"No you're not," murmured Luigi, his eyes threatening to close. "You would have done it again." Blood covered his green shirt. The laser had been fired just to the left of his heart, perhaps even grazing it. As Angel noticed what happened, she gasped and rushed forward, yet she was stopped.

"No!" snarled Daisy, shielding him from view. "You don't get to touch him! Look what you did—look what you've done!"

Ignoring her, said Luigi, "Angel…"

Daisy gasped and restrained a sob as Angel pushed her way past, kneeling beside him. Tears threatening to come over her face, whispered she, "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."

His eyes narrowed, he laughed curtly and said, "What, you think I'm going to die? No," he added with another chuckle. "Most likely just knocked out for a few hours."

"Oh," sighed Angel in relief. But seeing how much blood was beginning to spill over the deck, asked she dubiously, "Are you sure you'll be all right? I mean… look at this…"

He waved his hand dismissively; the gesture was somewhat weak. "Are you kidding? I've gotten paper cuts worse than this."

Angel laughed, but the sound was rather gravelly from restrained cries. His eyebrows raised as he said, "I'm not kidding. Boo and Dry Bones were making a huge poster as a prank. They were going to paint 'Wario and Waluigi sucks' and draw humiliating cartoons of them. I decided it was a good cause to help with. Unfortunately for me, I'm not very coordinated…"

The second laugh from Angel was more recognizable as a sign of joy. Luigi smiled hearing it. But Daisy's lip quivered, knowing that all her previous suspicions had suddenly come to life right in front of her eyes.

"How could you do this to me?" she whispered, knowing Luigi knew what she meant.

His gaze turned towards her. "You did this to yourself," he said at last. "It's true my friendship with Angel was much stronger than with anyone else. But that was no reason to do what you did. When that note was sent… I knew immediately who it must've been. At first, I refused to believe it. I was afraid to think that the girl I once loved was capable of causing immense pain on another's behalf simply because she was scared. There was nothing to be afraid of before, Daisy. Yet when I looked back, I saw… I saw how much you'd changed since Angel came. I saw how much **_I_** changed. And now I know we can't change back."

During this, Angel darted up and began calling for help. But she still heard his words…

Tear-streaks lined Daisy's face as he finished, "No matter what happens from here on out, things will never be the same as they were before. It's over."

He turned away from her and did nothing as Daisy shivered beside him. "All I wanted was to be sure you still loved me," she whispered.

"And you were prepared to drive Angel mad to do it," he replied. "If that's the sort of thing you do in the name of love, Daisy, maybe it's not love after all. And even if it was, by no right do you have the power to decide who my friends are. I can't help but wonder why you're so bothered by it now when you never were before with Peach or Birdo or Toadette."

Glancing at Angel, mumbled Daisy quietly, "You know as well as I do that she's different. We've all known she was part of something bigger since first we laid eyes on her. She causes love and hope to spring up wherever she goes. That's why I've been so afraid of Angel… why I've been so afraid of you. I saw how she changed you. How she **_still _**changes you."

"Sometimes change is a good thing," he answered lowly, not looking at her. "Change makes things better. Angel brings out the best in some… and apparently, the worst in others. She's special."

The way he said this last made Daisy certain that no matter how many times she could say she's sorry, no matter what she did, she would never win Luigi's love like she had once before. And so it was with a heavy heart that she said, "Just remember that everything I did was to protect **_us._**"

Shaking his head, said Luigi, "That might be what you say, but not what you mean. It's no use, Daisy. There's nothing to protect anymore."

At last, Angel heard footsteps around the corner. Based on the short shadows on the walls she guessed it was the Toad Doctors. Turning back to Luigi and Daisy, she walked over and pretended to not have heard their conversation. Noticing her approach, said Daisy, "Then you best be happy with what you've chosen," before whisking off.

Sighing, said Luigi after she was gone, "Sorry you had to hear that."

"Hear what?" asked Angel innocently.

"Very funny," replied he lightly. "Anyway… I really **_did _**have a paper-cut worse than this."

Smiling somewhat, said she, "I don't doubt you." But her voice wavering slightly as she spoke. Luigi knew that her mind was still swimming with the words she'd just heard.

Without looking at her, said he, "I'm sorry you had to go through all this. I should have stopped her—I was afraid myself to believe the truth. If I hadn't been so blind…"

"Don't say that," shushed Angel quietly. "Things always happen for a reason."

"Huh. There's one way to look at it. I might as well jump upon the opportunity, then. Have I ever told you I loved you?"

"Not necessarily…"

"Really? Interesting. Well, in that case, I love you."

The Toad Doctors rushed around the corner, followed by Mario, Peach, and practically the rest of the Crew except for Daisy. Seeing the scene in front of them, everyone immediately jumped upon asking questions at once. It was Angel's turn to then shut everyone up so Luigi didn't get a migraine.

"How are you feeling?" asked the Blue Toad Doctor.

Luigi resisted the urge to say, "Friend-zoned," and instead answered, "Fine." Though he tried to keep his gaze off of Angel, his eyes found hers anyway. For a moment they exchanged looks before she smiled in a perfectly understandable manner.

He grinned despite the fact he was still bleeding rather profusely.

The Toad Doctors quickly shooed everyone away as they hovered annoyingly overhead. Even as Angel was pushed away, she looked back to find the same smile still upon Luigi's face.

Because both knew the smile she had given him was labeled, _Well, good. I love you too._

_..._

The next few days that passed were filled with gossip. Though none except for those present truly knew what happened that night, large pieces of the puzzle were put together. Daisy made herself scarce, only visited by Jake, who had taken a liking to her company. In those moments she allowed herself to smile, knowing that Jake would still be her friend even if no one else would.

Upon learning Luigi really **_had_** been in danger of dying, Angel didn't let him hear the end of it. She spent most of her time the next three days in the hospital wing, but of course by this time he simply rolled his eyes whenever Angel would mutter, "**_Ugh, _**Luigi… you idiot." But she would smile all the same.

"It'll take more than a little light to kill me," he replied at last. "Especially now." He loved the look that followed.

When others entered, they aided Angel with her chastising. She made sure to grin smugly at Luigi as this happened—he would respond with the standard rolling eyes.

At last, at the evening of the third day, the Toad Doctors found there was nothing else they could fuss over. Angel and Luigi walked together to the Star Pad just in time to catch the rest of the Crew before they went off to celebrate. No one spoke out upon noting that Daisy and Jake were not present, for often they were gone, Daisy attempting to remain hidden and Jake still accustoming to his new life.

In truth, this suited everyone perfectly fine. The Crew had not forgiven Daisy yet for bringing about such suffering and despair on everyone's part. Yet after how well everything turned out—the rest of the Crew had not yet been informed on all that occurred on the deck that particular night—the only one regretting such actions was Daisy herself.

Two more weeks passed as such. Daisy's only consolation was that Jake was a very good companion and was more than friendly to her. When she was with him, she forgot all her woes and was herself. The remaining Crew members continued on what they always did—still neither Angel nor Luigi spoke of the full happenings, for they were quite content with the peace. Undoubtedly Toadette and Peach would both go berserk should they be alerted as to the full story, and the chaos that would follow was rather unwanted.

Yet in truth, the mushroom gal had suspected something amiss after Luigi's recovery. Though she did not show it, she was quite certain her friends were leaving some parts of their tale out. She decided to find out what it was.

Dragging Peach along during her diabolical plot to discover the truth—for both girls had similar interests—they hid behind a corner while Angel and Luigi watched the sunset peacefully for once. Convincing one another that their spying was for the greater good, they lay in wait.

When, however, Luigi finally took Angel's hand in his, they both squealed and shrieked, "I KNEW IT!"

Angel gasped—"Peach! Toadette! Wait!"

Needless to say… they didn't.

Defeated, Angel didn't even bother trying to chase after them. With a sigh she said, "Oh, no… now everyone's going to bombard us."

Grinning somewhat amusedly, said Luigi, "Did you really expect to keep it a secret forever?" He kissed her hand and walked off with a smile. Angel was glad he'd turned away—she was a horrible blusher.

Sighing, she hugged her arms and realized that more sounds were emerging from around the corner. Gasping, she knew that Toadette and Peach had probably caught the rest of the Crew by now and that they were most likely leading a siege to barrage her with accusations and questions.

Realizing her peril, Angel dashed around to her cabin, where she flopped on her bed and magicked the lights out so it appeared she was sleeping. Hopefully someone would have pity on her.

Luckily, someone did. When Angel heard the storm of angry girls that had been left out of the loop arrive, she heard, "Whoa, whoa, whoa!"

"AH! Mario! Let me go! I have beef to solve with this chick!"

"Birdo—relax—she's **_sleeping_**—"

"No, she's not! She's just buying for time! I want to talk to her right now!"

"No." Mario's voice was soft yet firm enough to make the troop of females huff and mutter with malcontent, "Fine. But we're coming first thing in the morning!"

Mario's amused laughter could be heard through the door, and Angel was grateful for his interjection. With almost no effort, seeing as she was exhausted, she quickly fell asleep.

...

As she slept, she tossed and turned. Though she did not dream of her past that night, she knew something was amiss. She knew that she should wake… she could no longer convince herself that it was nerves for the looks and shouts she would get the following morning. It was something more than that.

At last she made herself awake. Aware of the danger close by, Angel snatched a piece of paper off her bedside table and threw herself out of bed, desperate for a pencil. She could hear the footsteps of someone outside and only had enough time to draw two signs before her door was forced open.

"Find me," she whispered. The shadow drew nearer and Angel closed her eyes even before she was knocked out.

...

Morning arrived. Toadette, Peach, and Birdo all awoke with a fiery excitement seeing as this was the day Angel was going to spill the beans—or Luigi, whoever came first—or die.

Shooting out of their beds, they almost collided into one another during their haste to get to the dining hall. All three knew that Angel was one for getting up early, so their disappointment was great when they saw that Mario and Yoshi were the only ones there, reading and eating respectively.

Scowling, Peach muttered, "Well, where is she?"

"Have patience, Peach," Mario sighed without looking up from his book. "Not everyone likes having an entourage parroting everything happening in their lives."

The girls scowled at him and Toadette stuck her tongue out. With audible huffs of exasperation they didn't bother going for food, seeing as they wanted to wait for Angel.

Time passed, yet as other Crew members entered the hall their objectives did not. Scowling even more as each person arrived, the girls were quite dissatisfied by this point. Until at last—

"Ha! Luigi!" Birdo shouted, propelling up to meet him.

Luigi cursed under his breath. "And here I thought this could go by quietly…"

Mario laughed. "You should know by now that that'll never happen."

Toadette scoffed derisively. "Hoping that Angel could take care of this for you? Well, she hasn't come yet, so you're going to have to do it. Or we'll stab you."

"Ha, I don't doubt that. But no, I was not thinking that. I was simply hoping that over time your overexcitement might wear off. Apparently not." Sighing and rolling his eyes, Luigi pushed through the trio and walked over for food. "Actually, I'm quite surprised she isn't here yet. She doesn't sleep in late."

"Neither do you," pointed out Toad innocently.

Exchanging looks, Wario, Waluigi, Boo, and Dry Bones all snickered. Seeing the way his comment was taken, Toad shouted, "I didn't mean it like that! Ugh…"

Nodding at Toad, Luigi said, "You can hardly blame her for escaping from, might I say, **_unwanted _**attention." He glared at the trio of girls and quartet of pranksters.

They didn't seem very abashed and instead buried him with questions that Luigi answered vaguely, seeing as he hated being asked such things. When Peach finally got on his nerves by asking excitedly, "Have you kissed yet?!" he pointed at Peach and said to Mario, "Can you **_please _**do something about this?!"

Mario took one look at Peach's expression and sniggered. "Nope."

Groaning, Luigi put his hands over his ears and called for a painkiller.

Another half hour passed, and it was then almost ten in the morning. Frowning at the general direction of the cabins, Luigi announced over the squawking girls, "If I'm going to have to put up with this, **_she's _**going to suffer with me. I'm waking her up."

The girls quickly followed him, much to everyone else's amusement.

Rolling his eyes, he said nothing about it. As the quartet walked to the cabins, they thought of how poor—in Luigi's mind—Angel would react to the sudden onslaught of giggling and screeching.

Reaching the aquamarine door, he sighed and said, "Will you at least keep the volume down until she's awake?"

"No," Toadette answered plainly, her little face turning red from waiting so long.

"I thought not." He opened the door to find it was all dark inside. Raising his voice he added, "All right, Angel Claire, if I'm going to put up with this, I might as well have you with me."

Yet when he flipped on the light, she wasn't there.

Frowning, all four looked around. The room was deserted… "Where'd she go?" Birdo frowned, spinning a three-sixty.

"No idea," Luigi responded, his eyebrows furrowed. "I didn't know she left already… probably gone to take a walk somewhere…"

But that wasn't like her at all, he knew. Angel liked to come down, see her friends, and talk to them before setting off for the day's events. Then he thought of how she would react if Angel knew the trio behind him was coming. Restraining a smile, he knew exactly where she was. Or at least, he thought so until he heard—

"Hey, what's this?"

His smile faded as he turned around to face Toadette. She was holding a piece of paper in her right hand. On it were two hastily scribbled arrows… one leading up, the other right.

Frowning, he took it. He twisted it many ways. "Which direction did you find it in?"

"You took it from me when it was right-side up," she scowled.

"Up?" he asked. Maybe she'd found a new hiding place on the third floor. Wasn't unlikely. But then why would she have drawn so poorly? Angel was OCD about that sort of thing. This must've been important.

"Up…" he repeated, and he looked up from the note. The aquamarine door was in plain sight. "Or out?"

He walked outside the cabin and focused on the second arrow—the one leading left. Wherever she was, this must have been important… perhaps she meant up **_and _**left.

"Left?" he asked next. He moved over to the left corridor, the girls quickly trailing him. For a moment Luigi did multiple double-takes between the note and the deck in front of him. _Up… and left…_

He looked up and left and knew **_exactly _**what the note meant.

"Oh, no," he whispered, dashing off for the dining hall.

"Hey! Luigi! Where are you going?! What's going on?" Birdo shouted behind him, but she received no answer. Exasperatedly she and the others followed him, wondering just what scheme he and Angel were putting them under this time.

Whatever it was, Toadette vowed, she was going to nail them for it.

Until they reached the dining hall.

"Up and left," Luigi exclaimed. He threw the note down in front of Mario. "Look."

Mario put his book down hearing the urgent tone in his brother's voice. He took the paper in between his hands and glanced at it. "Wow. I didn't know Angel had it in her to be sloppy."

"Exactly. From her cabin… up and left…" Luigi pointed, still not able to bring himself to say the words. "What is up and left above the cruise ship?"

People thought for a moment and wondered what he was talking about. At last, however, Boo came to the ugly truth. Without a smile on his face, his eyes widened when he answered to the silence, "Bowser Castle."

Everyone stopped short as they realized what was going on.

"Give me that," Peach snapped shortly, snatching the note straight out of Mario's hands. He didn't even bother scowling—he was afraid to believe Boo's assumption to be fact.

As the girls scanned the arrows, Birdo shook her head and said, "Angel's never sloppy. Not like that. She always makes things pretty. This… is about as **_un-pretty _**as she'll get."

"I know," Luigi muttered, fists clenching. "Why on earth did we not realize this earlier?" Furious with himself, he kicked the nearest table. The contents rattled and the very table itself was almost knocked a foot up in the air. Everyone suddenly knew how much trouble the Crew was in.

"We've got to get her back," he then said, marching out of the dining hall without waiting for anyone. Realizing that if no one followed him then he'd go alone, Boo and Mario ran after him.

"If you think you're going alone, I'm crashing your party," Boo said.

Added Mario, "There's no way you're going without us. We'll get Angel back."

"Or die trying," Boo piped up.

Luigi smiled grimly and repeated, "Or die trying."

The others exited the dining hall just in time to watch Mario, Boo, and Luigi ascend the dark steps that appeared only when a Crew member wanted them to.

"We'll keep watch for you!" Toad called from below. "I got first watch!"

With that, the trio charged up the steps to Bowser Castle, determined to bring Angel home.


	10. Chapter 9

Angel awoke to strange surroundings. Of course, she had known that she wouldn't be in her cabin. All the same, the reality of being brought somewhere she didn't know was frightening.

Rising from the unfamiliar bed she was in, Angel hugged her arms and took a look at her surroundings. The room she was in was maroon and black; other than the bed, there was a bookshelf with sparse contents, a desk with a mirror above it, and a chair. It almost looked like a dark version of her cabin.

Her eyes focused on the doorway leading out. Cautiously, wondering if she had the nerve, Angel stepped forward. When she exited her room she realized there was a balcony just across the hallway. Slightly comforted, Angel drew closer to it.

The sight that awaited her, however, leeched the reassurance from it.

On the water, the cruise ship floated peacefully on the water. Due east of the island she could see the silhouette of another island, so very far away. Directly below her, dead plains of black encircled the castle. Trees with reaching branches were also black—it was quite clear that the fortress she was in was the only way to survive on the place that was most certainly Bowser Island.

"Enjoying the view?" asked a voice behind her. Filled with dread, Angel turned around.

The speaker was thick, with muscular with arms and legs covered in yellow scales with sharp black talons instead of fingernails. Upon his back was a green shell with spikes as if they were a protective enhancement. His eyes were unsympathetic, his face emotionlessness. Bowser's evil smirk held sharp teeth inside the mouth, and he had horns behind his ears. He vaguely reminded Angel of a Koopa.

Cocking her head sideways, she asked, "May I be honest?" He nodded. "No."

Bowser smirked and said, "Better get used to it. I'm prepared this time, so whatever tales your precious Crew might have told you… well, let's just say that you shouldn't be hoping that they'll repeat themselves. This plan won't fail."

Though Angel was usually subordinate to people with detectable authority, she decided that she didn't like this Bowser who was always trying to kill her friends—and she didn't base that judgment just because he'd kidnapped her.

"That's what they all say," she muttered, turning back to the view of the ship. She'd thought she'd seen something. Huffing audibly she then exclaimed, "So! What is it that you want from me?"

"Nothing in particular. You're just one portion of a multi-step plan," Bowser replied. His tone was condescending, which didn't make her any more benign. "If I bring you here, the brother comes to get you. Rather simple, really." His tone was mocking with that last.

Choosing to shoot it right back at him, said Angel sarcastically, "And if I may ask, your Hastiness, precisely what makes you so sure you'll kill Mario this time around?"

"Who's being hasty **_now, _**your Majesty? I didn't say anything about Mario."

Frowning, Angel finally turned. "Then who **_are _**you talking about?"

He smirked again, causing for her to fume internally. "What other brother is there?" he asked lowly and with menace.

"Oh, let's see, there's Jake, and Wario, and Waluigi…" Angel started to count them off on her fingers.

"I do believe you're forgetting one."

"Really? I don't think so."

"Very funny, princess. That won't work on me." Bowser gestured to a telescope standing to Angel's left. She'd been so entranced by the awkward sight of the ship that she hadn't noticed it previously.

Raising an eyebrow, she accused matter-of-factly, "You've been spying on me."

"Not necessarily. My son has been spying on you."

"You have a son?" Angel asked, surprised.

"Yeah, where do you think he gets all the evil genius from?" questioned a high-pitched voice. Angel turned to find a mini dragon inspecting his black claws much like she would her own fingernails whenever **_she _**would get bored.

This little dragon had the same body and shell as Bowser, but the little one had a white bandana around his mouth. The bandana had a row of sharp teeth painted on it, which Angel found both ironic and cute. His face was childish.

Bowser scowled at his son yet said nothing. He then turned back to Angel, who had an expression of fury upon her face realizing his sudden change of plan. "As I said before, you're just one step of my plan. As soon as we take care of your precious Luigi, Mario is left vulnerable. The rest of you will be as easy as roasting a Goomba. You Crew… you're so pathetic—like a chain. If one link breaks, so do you all."

Angel had heard enough. She began marching back to the room she had awoken in—just then there was a painful yank on her hair. Yelping, she was swung back around to face Bowser. She couldn't help but notice that the mini dragon looked slightly alarmed by the sudden gesture.

"Look there, princess," he said, shoving her roughly to the telescope.

Glaring evilly at him, she obeyed. Angel softened for a second seeing the determined faces of Boo, Mario, and Luigi. They had just entered the realm of Bowser Island and were no longer safe. But she had faith in them. They'd done this sort of thing before.

Gasping as her hair was grabbed forcefully yet again, Angel closed her watering eyes. "Did you see them?" demanded Bowser.

"Yes, you **_made _**me see them."

"Based on how you behave here, you can either make their lives easier by doing what I say, or make them hell by refusing me. Understand?"

Angel opened her eyes and summoned every particle of her being to become courage and defiance. She said nothing but allowed herself to nod.

"Good." Bowser threw her against the stone wall, and Angel could hear her spine pop upon impact. Groaning, she began to make her way back to the room. She stopped short as she saw the little dragon still watching her.

He coughed once. "Well, go on, then. You'll want to avoid him as much as possible." The little dragon was glaring after his father. He had left down the hallway somewhere. All Angel knew was that she most certainly would **_not _**be following. "Take my advice—just lay low and you'll be fine."

Angel glanced at him curiously. Most of his face was obscured by the mask he wore, but seeing her gaze he lowered it to below his chin. Moved by a sudden compassion, asked she, "What's your name?"

"Bowser Jr."

"I'm glad to have met you on decent terms, Bowser Jr."

The little dragon appraised her before giving her a small smile. "Sorry if you think it's weird we've been watching you. I get bored." His tone was casual, as if spying on the Crew for a master evil plan was an everyday thing. Angel figured that on this island, it probably was. "You got here about four weeks ago, didn't you?"

Angel nodded, surprised to find how much time went by already.

"I noticed as soon as you were a Crew member. Your color wasn't there before," he said thoughtfully. "I like it."

"Thank you," the princess smiled. "I do enjoy the sea."

"I've never gotten to swim in it before," pouted Bowser Jr. "It sucks. I can't swim, or scuba-dive… I wish I could read."

Angel was shocked—she couldn't picture a life without books. "Why ever not?"

"Well, I can read the Ancient Dialects of Stars and Ztars," Bowser Jr. amended. "But nothing modern. That sucks too. It's where all the good stuff is. My dad says it's a skill for the weak, so he hasn't really taught me to read English."

Frowning, Angel wagged a finger disapprovingly. "How can he let you live without books?" Another feeling of responsibility passed over her, despite the fact that Bowser Jr. had helped his father scheme up the plan of her capture. Even so, thought she, Bowser Jr. was just a child. "I'm going to see what I can do about that."

Gloomily he said, "Don't bother. My dad doesn't listen to anyone."

"Ah, but who said we were going to ask for permission?" said Angel, smiling deviously. "I've always said that to do things right you've got to do them yourself… most of the time. I'll teach you to read without him."

"How are you going to do that?" he asked skeptically.

Angel smiled. "I've helped others read. I'm sure you'll catch on."

Hopefully the dragon said, "Maybe you can read **_to _**me first." Piping up, he asked, "Can I get some of my friends?"

Comforted knowing he had friends on that wretched island, replied she, "Of course."

The look on Bowser Jr.'s face made Angel determined that should she escape the palace, she was going to bring him with her.

Though she did not know it, Angel spent the rest of the day reading to Bowser Jr. and his friends, Hammer Bro and Blooper. They were very good audience—quiet, respectful, and very good listeners. It seemed that despite the fact they were evil, they all had a love for literature.

Angel had taken a liking to all three of them, in fact.

Hammer Bro was a Koopa who wore a helmet and boots. Hammers were concealed within his shell—he was very proud of the hammers and of his helmet. The helmet was supremely strong in colors of blue and white. He proudly declared that it would protect him from anything, even from a free fall off Bowser Castle if he landed on his head. He was a highly respected officer and was the leader of all Hammer Bro forces.

Blooper looked just like a Giant Blooper, except Blooper was normal sized, not twenty feet tall. Blooper was the head of all underwater attacks, so he was respected too. The strange thing was that this squid didn't like fighting all that much; in fact, he was rather peaceful.

Closing the book at last, Angel laughed seeing the distant smiles of the others as they pictured the ending scene. They bashfully snapped out of their trances, each of them satisfied with how their day was spent. Hearing her cough afterward, Blooper rushed off to fetch her a glass of water.

When he returned, she thanked him. Her gaze rested outside towards the balcony, and for the first time she noticed that it was late in the evening. Gasping, Angel darted up and rushed to the telescope—"Oh! May I?" she asked, gesturing to the device. Joining her, Bowser Jr. nodded.

She focused the telescope on the path to Bowser Castle, slowly drawing it closer towards the palace. All of a sudden she caught a flash of white; stopping short, Angel could then see Boo's floating figure swerve up suddenly and dodge a rogue Bullet Bill heading towards him. Below him, Mario and Luigi were sprinting towards the fortress, neither of them paying the traps much attention.

"Oh my," she whispered to herself, withdrawing from the tool. They were almost halfway to the castle.

As she stepped back from his spy toy, Bowser Jr. ambled up to it. When he found the three members of the Crew, he didn't jolt or seem surprised. All he said was, "They really want you back." Angel couldn't help but hear the slightly remorseful tone his voice had taken.

Remembering the vow she had made upon first meeting Bowser Jr., Angel glanced past the hallways. The last she had seen, Bowser was tromping downstairs. At any rate, the princess wanted to be sure he was not anywhere close by when she lowered her voice and mumbled, "If you want, you can come with us."

Her new friends gazed at her skeptically. "What do you mean?"

"When Mario, Luigi, and Boo get here," she announced. "I can take you with me."

They exchanged looks; Blooper asked, "What if they don't like us? We've been serving Bowser for a long time, Angel—longer than you've been alive. Enmities can't just dissolve."

"But they **_can,_**" she whispered gently. "It's happened before. Sometimes all you need is a little faith. I know you're miserable here, I can see it in your eyes. You don't have to come if you don't want to, but there is one thing I can tell you about this new choice—I will protect you no matter what happens." With this last, Angel was certain she would keep her promise.

Bowser Jr.'s eyes widened hopefully, but almost immediately they returned to their original suspicion. It was as if the ordeal too good to be true. "Would those three even allow us to come with you?"

Angel smiled. "I would fight until they give in. Luigi knows my determination—or stubbornness, as he likes to call it—will last throughout all the worlds. Until they let you return with me, I would sit on that bed," she pointed to the bed she had woken in, "and not move."

The three of them smiled, but as Hammer Bro opened his mouth to speak there was the sound of someone climbing the steps. As one the three scattered into Angel's room. Blooper and Hammer Bro dove under the bed, seeing as they would be lashed if they were caught off-duty. Bowser Jr. quickly hustled to the telescope and began pretending to teach Angel how to use it.

Bowser arrived and stood unnervingly over their shoulders. Though the panic in his eyes was identifiable for a split second, Bowser Jr. recovered quickly and kept speaking, "If you move the glass, remember that you don't have to move it too much—those are binoculars—"

"What's that?" grumbled Bowser, unceremoniously pushing his son away from the tool. Angel inhaled sharply upon realizing that the telescope was still focused on her rescuers.

The dragon glared at them for a long time. Though Bowser Jr. and Angel wanted to sprint away from him, fear froze them in place. At last, Bowser withdrew from the telescope. Calmly but dangerously he turned to Angel and asked, "How are they using magic on my island?"

"Magic on your…" Angel was at a loss for words. She'd been told enchantments on Bowser Island blocked a large majority spells. "But that's impossible."

Frowning heavily he said, "Apparently, it's not. Your precious brothers are already halfway to my castle." He pointed a finger sharply in her direction, causing Angel to jump. "I'm giving you until noon tomorrow to answer me. If I don't have an explanation, things won't be as nice next I see you."

He stomped back off to his room and closed the door.

Breathing heavily, Angel regained feeling in her limbs. Gazing at Bowser Jr. plaintively she said, "But I don't know if they're using magic. I thought that was impossible! Isn't it?"

Seeing her imploring look he nodded. "You were told right. My father thinks that instead of Luigi being motivated by his love for you, he's using magic. My dad's a heartless guy." His voice was defeated and sour.

Putting a hand on his shoulder, murmured Angel, "And he's the only one." Knowing what she meant, he looked up with another renewed hope. "Good night, Bowser Jr.," she said before he could speak again. Smiling sincerely, she headed back towards her room and laid on the bed.

Remembering who was under it, she smiled again. "You two better hurry back to your posts. The coast is clear for now." Hammer Bro and Blooper emerged timidly, but gave her a smile before rushing off.

Once they were gone, Angel watched the sky grow dark before dropping off into sleep.

Down on Bowser Path, spirits were not high. Mario, Luigi, and Boo wore tight grimaces as they tried to keep their mind off of Angel and what she could possibly be going through while they ran. The traps were nothing more than annoyances at most—Bowser was too arrogant to believe he needed to switch them out every now and then.

At least it made the Crew's journey easier for whenever they had to travel up there.

Bullet Bills appeared every couple of minutes or so—missiles who targeted and locked onto their enemy by using a heat radar… unfortunately for them, the brothers or ghost would simply travel low to the ground and jump over the missiles so they would explode into the ground.

Bomb-ombs followed them a majority of the way, but as long as the rescuers didn't stop, they would explode without causing harm. Monty-Moles threw rocks at them, but the trio had had enough training to dodge those. Every now and then some dark magic would be shot at them from a Magikoopa wizard—the enchantments were normally so weak they were brushed aside. Hammer-wielding traps were present every now and then, and those were harder to escape seeing as they were used as projectiles. Even so, rarely did they make a mark.

Then there were more classic traps such as bubbling lava cracks and tarps covering parts of the ground leading into a spiked pit. Those weren't as often, seeing as they didn't dabble in black magic and were therefore not much to Bowser's liking, but they proved a nasty poser all the same.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Luigi as he jumped over a three foot fireball. But being trained among the Stars, he landed nimbly and kept running, followed by Mario and Boo.

He then ducked as a hammer came swinging over his head—Boo had to drop to avoid the same hammer. Mario jumped to avoid a bomb-omb collision at the same time. Another moment later, Boo had to do some fancy flying as he dodged two different bullet bills coming at him from two different directions. And a moment after that, Boo swooped to grab Luigi's arm before he could free-fall into a trap.

This went on for perhaps the whole day, but of course the trio was too powerful to truly be stopped by any of this.

It was annoying, that was true, but it could be worse.

Time grew on and darkness was beginning to loom overhead. They knew that when full night was over them there would be no way to continue for the day. Luigi, however, was determined to get enough distance past as possible.

Eventually Boo and Mario saw how dark it was getting. Each wondered whether they should continue onward—making their decision easier, Luigi shouted, "Hey! Five bucks says I'll get to that tree quicker than you guys can." He pointed in the distance, where the black tree was standing about a mile away.

"In your dreams!" shouted Mario, renewed in spirits.

Boo grinned maniacally. "You're about to owe me five bucks!"

Glad that his plan had worked, Luigi felt rather accomplished seeing as he did in fact reach the tree first. Smugly he walked on for a little while longer—the dark was too complete to go any faster than that, considering the traps. Behind him he could hear his brother and the ghost grumble about how they didn't have five bucks on their person, and maybe by the time they returned to the cruise ship with Angel, Luigi would have forgotten about it.

"I'm not going to forget if you keep complaining," Luigi rolled his eyes.

"Oh, that's probably a good point," Boo realized, not saying mentioning it afterwards.

The trio walked for another quarter mile before being forced to acknowledge that should they keep going, they would most likely trip, fall, and die. So they set up camp where they lay—having left in a hurry, none of them had brought anything except the clothes on their backs… in Boo's case, not even that. Luckily, they were not very hungry anyway.

It was silent for a while until Boo asked, "So where do you think Angel is being kept in that devil castle?"

The brothers thought about this before Mario answered, "I'm guessing the balcony. It's harder for us to get there, and the dungeons are usually too predictable. Besides, last time he captured Peach he used the dungeons, remember? I think some of the kinder minions put her in the good prisons, though."

Luigi nodded and said, "That was where I was thinking." His bitter tone of voice, however, made the others stop short and pause.

"Why didn't you tell us, anyway? We would've protected Angel even more. It seemed, for a while, that you tried to deny that you were in love with her. Why?" Mario asked.

Smiling ruefully, Luigi shook his head. "I don't know. Because I'm an idiot."

Boo gave him a creepy smile and replied, "Hey, you have your moments. But you're smarter than Wario and Waluigi."

"Is that a compliment?"

"Hey, take what you can get."

"That's my motto with you. Anyway, Angel has no clue what she can do to people. When I first met her, I wanted to protect her. That was the first thing I thought when I met her—she needs to be kept safe. She needs to be put away from danger. No harm can come to her. And since she's arrived here…"

He stopped for a moment to think. Then his voice turned bitter—"She's been electrocuted and tortured by past memories **_because of me. _**No matter how hard I try to protect her, something always happens. And it's always my fault.

"I thought that maybe if I stayed away from Angel, then nothing bad could come out of it. Each morning I told myself to stay away. But I never could. In the end I'd have to find her again. Every time I did this, I felt guilty because I couldn't distance myself from Angel, not even for her own safety. And whenever I **_was _**away, she would give me this… look, as if she had done something wrong. It killed me. Since she arrived, I've noticed there was something about her that just draws her to you. She's special… but she has absolutely **_no _**idea what she can do. Drives me crazy," he added with a laugh.

Boo snickered and said, "Dude, tough break! First you get landed with Egomaniacal Egghead, now you're hooked up with Miss No Self-Esteem."

"Angel's perfect. She just doesn't know it."

There was a silence afterward.

"That's why you couldn't let Daisy hurt her," Mario murmured at last. "It would've broken you."

"Not only that, but if I hadn't pulled Daisy's arm back, Angel would be dead," Luigi whispered. "I saw the angle the laser would've traveled. Straight through her heart less than a week after it mended. I'm afraid that Angel might be weakened for life because of that lightning injury. She can never really be safe again."

Confidently, Mario replied, "She can be. Time mends all problems. You and I know this better than anyone." Mario was referring to the Ten-Thousand Year War, a war that had ended in a truce approximately two-thousand years ago. It was because of the war that the Mario Crew was even started.

Laughing lightly, Luigi said, "That much is true." Then he sighed and closed his eyes, thinking of Angel in Bowser Castle. For a couple of minutes he thought of all the ground they'd covered in one day, and how that feat had never been accomplished before—he didn't even feel tired, it was like magic—

"Oh, no," gasped Luigi, bolting upright. "What have we done?"

Boo yawned widely. "Wass goin' on now?"

"We've never traveled this far in one day," Luigi answered, eyes wide.

Mario laughed quietly. "Bro, that's a **_good _**thing."

"No, it's **_not,_**" Luigi hissed back. "Bowser doesn't understand why we're going so fast. He thinks this is just another rescue mission. He doesn't think coming this far in one day is humanly possible—so you know what explanation he'll come to?"

"No, what?" Boo asked carelessly, floating around. All of a sudden he stopped. At the same time, Mario jolted into a sitting position just as Luigi had. As one, they all answered, "**_Magic._**"

"Oh, Stars," Mario echoed. "Bowser won't be happy…"

"And Angel's the only one in range of his rage," finished Luigi. His hands clenched together so tightly he nearly lost all circulation in his fingers. "What have we **_done?_**"

Boo put a translucent arm on his shoulder and said, "Bowser isn't one for spying. Maybe he hasn't noticed yet. If we set off early enough tomorrow morning, we could reach the castle before he has any time to do anything. Angel could very well be safe."

His words were meant to calm Luigi down, but they only settled him a slightly.

"If you want, you can keep sleeping. As for me, I'm setting off at dawn." With that, Luigi lay back down, his mind swimming with how many more mistakes it'll take him before he would truly realize that Angel's life without him would be much safer than one **_with _**him.

"Well, the moon is bright. I can see the stars. There are no obnoxious people up here."

Angel was trying to point out the positive things she could see in her room. She'd been woken up by nightmares two hours beforehand, and was now trying to sleep again, but her nerves were not allowing that to happen.

_The moon provides light so you can see you're not on the ship. The way the stars twinkle mock you. And you miss the partying from everyone._

Through clenched teeth, growled Angel to her brain, "I **_know, _**I **_know…_**"

She tossed and turned on her bed and finally decided she was much too restless to sleep. Throwing her legs out of the bed, Angel strode to the telescope and peered out of it. To her dismay, it was much too dark to see anything.

Groaning, Angel paced her room. She longed to find her friends on Bowser Path, but no such luck. At last, Angel could keep it in no longer. She seized a pillow from the bed and screamed into it, releasing all her anger and frustration before chucking it back.

"Angel?" asked a voice.

She turned to see Bowser Jr. standing in the doorway, his little shadow even smaller than usual. Not even she, in her state, could keep back a small smile seeing him.

"Hello, Bowser Jr."

"Are you all right?"

Angel sighed and smiled, bending down to be level with him. "Why don't you go back to sleep?" she queried instead.

He scoffed. "Sleep is for the weak. I'm not tired. Are you okay?"

"No. Bowser thinks my friends are using magic to get here. Because of this, something bad will happen to Mario, Boo, and my Luigi."

Bowser Jr. couldn't help but notice her wistful tone. His brain whirled as he tried to fathom why Angel was so upset about not being with her friends. Then he realized it was because she enjoyed their company. Though his father had grown to disdain the Crew and all their ways, Bowser Jr. finally opened his eyes to the possibilities of that option.

"Hey, Angel?" he asked at last, taking a tentative step forward.

"Yes?"

"Do you think the Crew would accept me as a friend?"

Angel stopped short. Carefully she replied, "I'm not really sure. I feel some would accept you straight away… some others would be suspicious of you for a while. After all, it has been a while you've all been fighting… but time usually mends problems." She smiled sadly, thinking of all the times Luigi had said this to her. "Why do you ask?"

Bowser Jr. didn't reply straight away. But at last he answered, "I was just wondering. I've noticed since you arrived that power isn't everything. That's what my father thinks, it's how he's raised me. Yet now that I see you and how you miss everything you have, it's made me wonder about whether I'm really happy here. And I've decided… I'm not."

Taking a deep breath, the little dragon continued, "I want a fresh start. A better life, one that I can be proud of. I feel that you and the rest of the Crew can give me that… but only if I'm accepted. If I'm not, then it's not much better."

Angel was moved with a strong desire to pick him up and hold him close. She resisted the urge and instead said, "The Crew is all about goodness and second chances. They'll accept you… just be kind and considerate, and they'll see you the way I do."

Grinning, Bowser Jr. hopped onto her bed, kicking his legs over the side of her bed. She smiled and ruffled his short orange hair—suddenly a large silhouette blocked the moonlight.

Both gulped at the sight of Bowser in the doorway… had he heard their previous conversation? Frozen with fear once more, Angel only felt warmth return to her body when she heard Bowser say, "Your rescuers are three quarters to my castle. In a single… day."

His tone of voice was dangerous, but his contained rage at Luigi's determination was surely better than his open rage towards she and his son had he heard Bowser Jr.'s change of heart. As it was, Angel soon turned to steel the way she did whenever in Bowser's presence. "And?"

"And that means there's something you haven't told me. All the times I've taken a princess, it's taken them three to four days to arrive here. Why so suddenly do they realize they can run faster?"

"Love makes people do impressive things."

Bowser snorted. "**_Love…_** you Crew members are pathetic with your love. Love is a motivator, love is in the air… get out the gas mask, I say, and give me power."

Maliciously, Angel replied, "No wonder you don't understand how they're traveling so fast. You're sick and coldhearted. Love makes you do the impossible… but of course you don't know that, now, do you?"

Though she knew she should stop, Angel couldn't halt the words as they tumbled out of her mouth. "Love makes you stronger than anything. It causes the best things to come out of people. It makes life worth living—yet you do not know this, because you refuse to love. You do not love your own son even though he wants nothing more than your praise and approval."

"Do not speak to me about my son," Bowser growled, but Angel ignored him.

"Why not?! It's about time **_someone _**told you the truth to your face, since everyone's so afraid of you. Well, guess what—I'm **_not. _**You say that Luigi will be easy to kill, but you've forgotten something. I'll be standing beside him too. Mario, Boo, and I wouldn't leave him for the world because we all love and care for one another. Can't you see, Bowser? Can't you see that no matter what you do, you cannot win?" Angel finally stopped and took a deep breath, seeing the flash of fury come across her captor's eyes.

With a terrifying quietness he hissed, "You're wrong." Then he stalked out of the room, leaving Angel wondering if she had been lucky enough to escape without injury.

Just as she was about to sigh in relief and flop back on the bed, a spark of orange came across her vision. Angel froze where she stood and looked back at where Bowser had disappeared—the orange glow was still visible. Curious yet frightened as to what she would find, she made her way out to the balcony.

Dread filling her entirety, Angel looked down to find a wall of lava coming steadily towards her friends from the entrance of Bowser Island. If Mario, Boo, and Luigi didn't move, they would be burned alive.

Desperate to warn them, Angel screamed their names. "Mario, Luigi, Boo! **_RUN!_**" She was about to shout it a second time but someone suddenly stopped her—a hand enclosed over her throat and Angel could hardly gasp for breath as she was turned to face Bowser.

"I have the power to make this go faster or stop it," he growled menacingly, gesturing to the remote in his other hand. "It's your choice."

Angel could feel the air and life being squeezed out of her. Bowser lessened his grip, but only enough for Angel to breathe and growl, "What do you want?"

"Tell me. How they're using. Magic," he growled in response.

Angel's eyes narrowed until they were almost slits. Then she snarled, "I don't know **_how _**many times it'll take you to realize this, but they're not—using—magic!" These last three words were shouted so loud that black dots danced across Angel's vision from near lack of air.

Seeing the look in her eyes, it was clear to Bowser that Angel either did not know the truth of their magic using or she truly believed she was right. He discovered there was no possible way to find out from the princess.

So Bowser tossed her mercilessly through the air, back onto the bed she'd been lying awake in. The brothers and their pet ghost had unfortunately heard Angel's warnings and were up and running, seemingly not tired at all. He watched with dissatisfaction as all his traps missed them or were defective.

Knowing that his father would stand there and watch the brothers eventually burn, Bowser Jr. leapt up and snatched the remote from his hand. Once it was in his grasp, the little dragon swiftly shut the device off—"Angel! It's off!" he called back to his friend. "I turned it—"

Bowser Jr.'s next words were suddenly broken off by an earsplitting slap. A pained yelp followed it, and the little one darted into Angel's room and dove under the bed.

Angel watched fearfully as Bowser stormed in after his son, but he had not seen where Bowser Jr. had gone. "There," he growled, pointing at Angel, "was my proof that you **_know _**how to use magic on this island. My own son would not betray me unless you forced him to."

Positive that no spells were being performed within a two-hundred foot radius, Angel spat at him, "Maybe, Bowser, all you need to do is take a good long look in the mirror. And after you do, answer this question: Do people really **_need _**to use magic to turn against you? Sometimes a healthy dose of anger is all it takes."

At first, Angel was afraid that perhaps she had pushed him too far. But then her captor took a step back.

"You have until noon tomorrow," he threatened, pointing mercilessly at her. "And no later, or there will be consequences."

With that, Bowser withdrew from the room. After a few moments, Angel signaled to Bowser Jr. that it was safe to come out—upon seeing the red mark on her little friend's face, she swallowed a yelp of her own and wished she could do something to ease the stinging of the slap.

Sensing Angel's worry, said he, "It's okay… I've had worse before."

Involuntarily, she growled in the direction Bowser had stomped off, promising herself that as soon as Luigi and the others arrived, they would end him. With Bowser Jr. also murmuring encouragingly beside her, Angel was finally able to close her eyes and sleep.

Because she knew that she would be safe… at least, until the morning.


	11. Chapter 10

Down on Bowser Path, the trio had been sleeping without peace, thinking about Angel and their tremendous mistake. Luigi especially found it hard to gain any rest, but at last he was successful. After all, it's what Angel would want.

But being chased by a river of lava had been unexpected. Hearing Angel's voices in their dreams, she had brought them back to reality by warning them of the danger they were in. Luigi, Mario, and Boo had had no other choice except to obey her commands—even when her shouts had suddenly been cut off.

Now it was early in the morning; dawn's first light was creeping over the black, dead trees. There was no need for Luigi to set off alone, however. After the incident with mobile magma, the trio had not caught any more sleep.

Luigi was suddenly jarred from his thoughts of the previous night by Boo, who was wondering aloud, "Anyone know how much longer the road is? I'm tempted to calculate what time we'll be at Angel—"

"Favor?" Luigi asked tightly, realizing something the others didn't. "Don't."

Boo and Mario exchanged looks. Each knew something was going on that they didn't know about—so Mario asked, "What is it?" knowing that Luigi knew what that implied.

"That river of lava," he said without facing the others. "It showed up for a reason. Bowser knows we're here. He knows how far we've come. What I'm worried about is… what he'll do to Angel now. We escaped, as usual, and we're too close to his castle for Bowser to launch anything at us. The only thing he can do is punish Angel."

As the others' eyes widened, Luigi furiously kicked a tree. "Like I said—every measure I take to protect her comes right back and blows up in my face! Ow," he muttered angrily, rolling his eyes. He realized that his attempt to let some of his frustration out at the stupid tree blew up in his face, too.

"Story of my life," he sighed. Without another word he rushed to the castle.

Left with no other options, Boo and Mario quickly followed.

Their morning was spent in silence as each tried to figure out how to get into the castle. Certainly the doors would be locked, and magic wasn't going to help them. Brute force might work if the three of them combined their power—most likely they'd have to sneak around the building and climb the balcony. It was common…

The looming castle grew larger and larger with every step. As Luigi bitterly knew, however, any minute could be Angel's last, and all were perfectly aware that there was still plenty of time before they could actually **_bring _**her to safety.

Before any of them knew it, midday had arrived. Bowser Castle was less than a mile off, and Luigi was beginning to hope. Maybe nothing bad happened to Angel… they were so close…

Suddenly, Mario inhaled sharply.

"What?" Luigi asked, immediately noticing. "What is it?"

His brother did not answer. Luigi was forced to look himself—what he saw made him stop short.

"Angel…"

...

"Angel," whispered a little voice. Angel stirred restlessly and rolled over, not really registering the urgency. "Angel, wake up!"

At last her eyes opened to see the black ceiling. Blinking once, she turned to find Bowser Jr. on the side of her bed. Behind him, Hammer Bro and Blooper were standing awkwardly.

Frowning slightly, Angel moaned as she sat up. Glancing around, asked she, "What time is it?"

"It's about eleven thirty," he answered quietly. "You fell asleep at three in the morning… but Angel…" Bowser Jr. took a deep breath and continued. "We have to get you to safety. My father will be back for you in a half hour. You have to get back to the ship."

"Is Luigi here?" Angel asked, shooting bolt upright.

Hammer Bro shook his head solemnly. "He's very close, but he won't get here before Bowser. But we can offer you a way out—when Luigi comes we can tell him where you went. He'll have no choice but to trust us."

Angel smiled sadly and sighed, knowing that Luigi would sooner rampage the castle thrice before accepting the word of someone who could very well be tricking him about her whereabouts. And so she responded, "No. I'm going to wait for him. Thank you for caring, but I'm not leaving without him… **_or _**you."

The three minions exchanged panicked looks. Bowser Jr. shoved his concern into his eyes only as he said, "You might pass Luigi if you go the way we want you to. Your safety will be compromised if you stay. If he loves you, he'll understand."

Another smile made its way onto the princess's face as she replied, "But you do not see that I'm staying because I want to see him. I want to be sure he is safe as well—I do not believe Bowser will truly hurt me. I do not think he is capable of killing me. I'll be fine… now I want to be sure my Luigi is too."

Hearing the finality in her voice, Blooper knew how hopeless their case was. Stepping forward, he said, "In that case you must get ready to run. Most likely your rescuers will climb up the side of the tower. It's happened too many times to count… we can supply you with a fair share of food."

"Are you not coming with me?" questioned Angel, hearing his tone of voice.

More glances were passed around between the three standing at her bed. Flashes of hope and indecision appeared, but when Hammer Bro and Blooper saw the determination in Bowser Jr.'s eyes, they answered, "I guess we are."

The joy that was present on Angel's face made everything worth it, they thought.

And so they all waited anxiously in the room Angel slept in, wondering when the heavy footsteps would break the buzzing silence of the room, signaling Bowser's arrival. Angel could not help but watch the clock and its slowly ticking numbers… the hands of the clock moved only too purposefully.

The sounds of exploding traps were very close to the castle—Angel suspected that Mario, Luigi, and Boo were no more than a mile or two off. Her consciousness split in two, wondering if she should stay put and wait or go out to check.

"I'm looking," announced Angel aloud after an agonizing minute of uncertainty. Without waiting for any of the three to object, she leapt clumsily to her feet and stumbled to the telescope on the balcony.

But there was no need to even use it. Her three friends were so close Angel could see the green, red, and white waving like a rebellious flag against the surrounding black. It was a beautiful sight, for she was getting rather tired of the accursed color.

Her relief was not meant to last. As Angel had understood and taken the risk by coming out to the balcony, there was the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs.

Before she could help it, Angel gasped and almost tripped backwards as someone came to the balcony—"Wait," exclaimed Bowser Jr. quietly. He dashed to the balcony, quickly followed by his friends, and stood guard in front of Angel.

Not two seconds afterward, Bowser blocked the way from the balcony to the room. He stopped out of shock for a quick moment before regaining his composure. Then, said he, "Before last night, I never dreamed that my own son would mutiny against me. But now I see that this **_Angel _**character has more influence than I originally anticipated. I won't deny that I underestimated you—something, I assure you, that won't happen again."

Bowser began to step forward, but his son and his friends obscured his path. Growling lowly, he threatened them with a variety of punishments, but still they would not back down.

Out of rage, Bowser slapped his own son so hard in the face that the little dragon was propelled into the stone wall.

Stunned with the removal of one of their comrades, Hammer Bro and Blooper were easily shoved out of the way afterward.

Angel stood alone yet strong in defiance of Bowser's rage. She did not let herself reveal any sort of emotion as he towered over her and muttered, "How? How have you taken away the one person I was so sure would stand by me all these years?"

Finally, she let herself smile out of pity. And then, said the princess, "I was kind to him. I tried to help him. Your son longed for your attention. You gave him none, and I knew that there was something I could do to help. You'd be surprised how love triggers loyalty."

A fire erupted behind Bowser's eyes, and Angel steeled herself as he said, "There will be no one else to be loyal **_to_**," before summoning the dark flames inside him.

Angel whirled around and let her back take most of the damage. Though the blow avoided her heart, the princess could still feel the fire lick at her dress, her corset, and then her skin. And still it hungered—for flesh, for her skin—leaving red, raw marks when it had fed.

But fire was always hungry.

So Angel collapsed onto the ground, her eyes threatening to close as the heat pursued her even as she fell. The flames spread down her arms and legs, threatening to travel up her face and hair, where it would win the battle against her resistance.

Angel could not remember screaming. She was rather sure she hadn't, but someone else did—"NO!"

Bowser Jr. threw himself on his father's back, distracting Bowser from Angel by being forced to relinquish his attack. But that wasn't the only shout she'd heard.

"**_Angel!_**" screamed a voice from below.

"Oh, Luigi," she sobbed, allowing for tears of pain to flow before closing her eyes.

...

"**_Angel!_**" he yelled a second time. Luigi full on sprinted to the castle—the doors were less than a quarter-mile away.

Though the traps were most plentiful around this area, nothing could touch him, so great was his determination to reach the castle. No matter how hard the last barrage of Hammer Bros swung their hammers, nothing. The lava pits didn't matter; the trio jumped across them. Bullet Bills collided with the cages that lowered down as they unsuccessfully tried to capture the three, and all of the collision victims were destroyed. The bomb-ombs were stuck in the fake-ground-pit traps that Mario, Luigi, and Boo simply swerved and avoided.

Strangely, the front doors were unlocked. Luigi only had to slam into them to open the double-doors standing in front of him—they swung open wildly on their hinges, allowing them free access to the castle.

Not even bothering to glance at the astounded minions that froze and saw them go up the staircase, Luigi was resolute to reach Angel in time or die trying, just as he had promised.

"Dude… slow… down!" huffed Boo unhappily. He was not accustomed to flying that fast.

Luigi only shot him a death glare to make Peach proud and continued on.

At last they reached the top spire of the castle, where Luigi dashed to the balcony only to find it was deserted. But the doors leading to Angel's room were not only locked, but obviously blocked with furniture.

"Mario!" he choked, slamming into the door with all the force he could. "Help me break this!"

It seemed an eternity, but at last the barrier was deemed unbreakable. Their shoulders cried out for relief, which Luigi refused to give. Try as they might, Mario and Boo could not summon magic to penetrate the walls.

Luigi could hear resilient shouts suddenly ring through the walls—"Get back!" shouted a high-pitched voice he recognized. He froze. It was Bowser's son.

Seemingly out of the blue, Luigi's pocket began to burn. Starting, he stopped trying to break the door straight up and reached into his pocket. A silver pendant gleamed out at him.

"Stars," he whispered, staring at it. "I'd forgotten…"

Then, holding the talisman in his fist tightly, he whispered, "Please let me save her…"

Summoning as much energy from the necklace as he could, he transferred it into himself before going back to the balcony to get a running start. Mario and Boo watched him helplessly and were about to stop him, to tell him it was no use, but before they could, Luigi ran past them at inhuman speed.

The strength gathered from the transfer was enough, and Luigi did what he was not able to do without the talisman's aid. The door was blown off its hinges so hard that it soared into the room and knocked a huge silhouette straight to the ground, unconscious.

Mario and Boo stared aghast as Luigi burst into the room to see what happened. The dust that appeared made everything foggy and unclear for a few split seconds, but at last the picture was identifiable.

But it was unexpected. Bowser Jr., Hammer Bro, and Blooper all seemed to be **_protecting _**Angel, whom Luigi could not see. The room was all except destroyed, the foundation of it the only thing left. Parts of the stone floor were popped up and chipped, the wooden desk to his right in splinters.

Drawing his attention away from the room, he then heard a weak, "Luigi…"

His head jerked toward the sound of Angel's feeble voice. She never sounded like that—"Angel?" he whispered, looking around.

Bowser Jr. moved aside and said, as Luigi rushed past him, "Be careful. Her back is burned pretty bad." Then he stood aside. Surprising him, the little menace then added, "Back up, you guys. Let it sink in."

They all backed up to the doorway, but didn't seem to want to leave the room. Luigi, Mario, and Boo all noticed the strange change that had come over the minions of Bowser. They seemed to truly care for Angel in a way they never did for anyone else before.

Luigi dropped to his knees seeing the state his Angel was in. Her dark hair was singed, turning her beautiful chocolate locks black. Her dress was no longer recognizably aquamarine—nor was it truly recognizable as a dress. Patches were frayed and burned, the hem completely covered in soot and almost torn straight off. Her legs were pale and covered with red welts, as were her arms. A small blotch of skin on her neck was cut, leaving a thin trail of blood that cascaded to the floor.

Angel's smile, however, was sincere as her hand softly rose to touch Luigi's face. Taking a deep breath, she restrained from wincing and said, "I've missed you."

He laughed sorely and shook his head. "You should never have had to," he answered, furious with himself. "This shouldn't have happened. It's my fault—every time I try to protect you, I just put you in more danger. Maybe…" he trailed off, unable to say the words.

"Maybe what?" Angel asked faintly, her voice struggling to remain audible.

Luigi just shook his head. But at her pleading insistence, he finally caved. "Maybe you **_should _**go home, Angel," he whispered at last. "You're safe there."

A tear rolled out of her eyes. "Never."

"And the worst part is that half of me is glad you said that."

Angel laughed, but that was immediately followed by a gasp of pain. She shuffled uncomfortably on the cold stone floor, and Luigi suddenly remembered what Bowser Jr. had warned him about.

"Angel," he said, voice tight. "Turn over."

She shook her head wildly.

"Angel," he pleaded. "Show me what he did."

Reluctantly, she obeyed. And when she did, she could hear Luigi's sharp breath—the dress had been completely burned away except for a few threads digging into Angel's already maimed and burned skin. It shone a furious bright-red, inflamed and irritated from the small particles of dust and rock of the floor. This new injury covered all her back,,, and Angel's heart was still weak from its grievous wound earlier on.

"Angel," he whispered desperately. "What happened? Angel?"

For she had gasped and started. "I'm okay," she whispered, eyes fluttering.

"Damn it, Angelica Claire, you are **_not _**okay!" Beginning to panic at Angel's decreasing health, he called, "Mario, Boo!"

Instantly they appeared at his side, each stifling exclamations of shock upon seeing her condition. "Is there anything we can do?" Luigi asked, and neither knew what to answer.

Bowser Jr., strangely, piped up. "I can bring you back to the ship. Its remedies can bring her back."

"Why should we trust you?" Luigi snapped.

"Because I'm her only chance," Bowser Jr. whispered. Luigi started; he was right. Alone, there was no way he would be able to get Angel back to the cruise ship in this state.

The light in Angel's eyes brightened momentarily hearing Bowser Jr.'s words. With effort she was able to say, "Take… Bowser Jr… with—" before gasping and falling unconscious.

"Angel?" Luigi asked worriedly, his hand grasping hers. "Angel! Wake up!"

Bowser Jr. shuffled forward and gently inspected Angel's face, caressing her cheek in a way that clearly labeled he cared. Then he said, "She'll live, but only for a few more hours. That back injury needs to be taken care of."

Boo groaned behind Luigi. "It'll take days to get back to the ship! She won't make it…"

"She **_will_**," said Hammer Bro in a final tone. "We can get you back in two hours. All you have to do is follow us."

Mario, Luigi, and Boo all froze with this suggestion. They didn't know what to think—for years, Bowser Jr., Hammer Bro, and Blooper had been three of Bowser's minions, their enemies. And suddenly, because of Angel's kindness, they wanted to help save her life? It was almost unfathomable.

Dumbfounded, the others turned to face Luigi, for he was the unspoken leader of Angel's rescue. He glanced down at her face and thought of Angel's last few words. Then he knew that **_if_**—and that was a very small if—she died, then at least he should fulfill her last request.

Again, he liked to believe it was a very small "if."

"All right," he said at last, glancing at the small figures of the trio. "What can we do?"

Grins burst out over their faces as Bowser Jr. hopped up ecstatically and shouted, "Follow me!" He darted down the hallway and waited expectantly for them to arrive.

Seeing the pressure the rescue mission was suddenly put under, Luigi gently lifted Angel in his arms. His eyes rested on her pale yet peaceful face for only a moment before his gaze fell upon Bowser.

Fury ran through him as a fire through his veins—Luigi kicked Angel's captor as fiercely as he could in the face. Hearing the satisfying _crunch, _growled he, "Good. I hope I broke his nose."

And with that, he pursued Bowser Jr.'s retreating figure.

...

Ten minutes later, everyone found themselves in the courtyard of Bowser Castle. While the original three Crew members were suspicious about why they were there, there was no other choice except to trust the new three.

An eerie silence settled about them—that was broken when Bowser Jr. loudly whistled, fingers in between his teeth.

Instantly answering his call, a carriage pulled by two skeletal black horses emerged. The equestrians stamped impatiently and turned to Mario, Boo, and Luigi, clearly not taking a liking to them. Those who had lived in Bowser Castle managed to calm them down at last.

"You go first." Bowser Jr. directed this to Luigi, who had Angel in his arms.

Deciding not to argue, he stepped past them. Bowser Jr. watched him apprehensively, the former minion's eyes on the princess—"Is she going to be all right?" he burst out so suddenly he almost made Luigi trip.

He turned to face Bowser Jr.'s remorseful eyes and couldn't bring himself to speak the possibility. So instead he said, "I won't let her go."

Slightly comforted, the ex-henchmen allowed them to pass. Mario and Boo followed Luigi, and Bowser Jr. ordered the horses to run and not look back. Behind them, the sound of a second earsplitting whistle could be heard.

Mario and Boo both noticed the tension in Luigi's shoulders, the demented shadows flitting past his eyes, and the way his grip was so tight on the upholstery of the seats. The two exchanged looks.

The journey to the edge of the island's borders, under any other circumstance, was short. Very short, perhaps an hour and a quarter, give or take. But to Luigi, it was long—**_too _**long. Every minute he spent in the carriage, with a fading Angel resting against him, was another minute wasted.

As it was, as soon as the horses slowed down, Luigi quickly moved to the door, preparing to fling it open and descend with Angel in his arms. And he did just that—Mario and Boo insisted he go down to the ship without them as they waited for the others.

From the side of the ship, Luigi could hear someone shout, "You guys! They're back!" A horde of hurried footsteps met his calls. Before long, people were clamoring for others to move so as to see if Angel was all right.

Shouts of joy could be heard when the silhouette of Luigi came into view—but there was one who noticed something was wrong. Peach could see the hurry he was in and deemed it was not over.

She was proven right when he came closer. Everyone saw Angel's closed eyes, the state of her dress, her hair, her bare legs and arms—but most of all, her back. Toadette and a few others had to restrain gasps as Luigi hustled straight past them without a word.

They all saw he was pale as a ghost.

Luigi did not pay attention to the whispers. The volume of those only escalated when they saw Mario, Boo, Bowser Jr., Hammer Bro, and Blooper come down the cloud steps together.

Kicking the door open, Luigi called for the Toad Doctors, who of course immediately responded. The blue Toad Doctor took a look at her and paid no attention to the audience around him—after declaring the case as severe, fatal if untreated for even another half hour, the four Doctors scrambled to action, gathering ingredients and brewing remedies.

"Bowser's fire has a certain darkness," blue Toad Doctor explained as he rigorously stirred a concoction. "The Ztars created it when he was. If he burns something, or in this case **_someone, _**alive, then the heat of the flame spreads all throughout the victim's body, traveling gradually to their heart."

Asked Luigi through clenched teeth, "Can you do anything?"

The Doctors nodded absently, lost in their work. Someone unexpected spoke next. "That's so horrible…"

Everyone was startled to see it was Daisy. She had beforehand made herself scarce, seeing as she had been afraid of what others would say. But now she reemerged, determined to apologize for what she'd done… Jake had given her the courage to do as much, what with his comforting company and unexpected declaration of his love for her.

As a matter of fact, he stood beside her now. Luigi noticed dimly that Jake's hand overlapped hers, and he could not keep from a small smile. But his **_own _**love… he turned towards her just as the Doctors poured a potion down her throat.

Much like the medicine from the lightning, Angel seemed to be under intense pain. Except now, her eyes were open, and everyone was much too shocked to hold her down. All watched with an increasing panic as she tossed and turned with clenched teeth, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Another one?" Mario asked the Toad Doctors lowly. They nodded somberly and said, "There's nothing anyone can do. She is not in pain, but…" they trailed off.

Luigi stared at Angel, yet his question was directed to the Doctors. "What do you mean?" His voice was tight.

His questions were answered when Angel screamed out loud, "**_NO!_** **_Don't kill him!_**" And she began sobbing uncontrollably, throwing her hands against her face to block her vision—whatever it was, it was burned through her eyelids.

"Hallucinations," he answered himself, darting forward to catch Angel from collapsing. "Angel, look at me!" he cried, carefully forcing her to look at him. She froze, torn between the vision in front of her and the one inside her mind. "I'm here…"

She was shaking and felt cold to the touch, and the burns across her back flared angrily from her moving in anguish. At last she moved so suddenly everyone else started; she grabbed Luigi's hand as more tears fell down her pale face. She did not seem able to close her eyes.

Everyone could see the unmistakable pain past them. Angel truly believed she was in the dark of Bowser's dungeons—everything had been a dream, and Bowser's plan had worked. All her companions, including the newest three, had been thrown in a dungeon, where Bowser executed them all one-by-one, forcing her to watch, forcing her to remain alive when she too would rather be dead.

Angel choked on her sobs and lay back down on the white bed, her suffering too much to take in upright. Refusing to let go of Luigi's hand, she attempted to curl in a ball, but the Toad Doctors would not allow it. Doing so would have stretched Angel's inflexible skin to near breaking point.

"How long does this last?" Luigi asked the Doctors, observing her condition.

They all exchanged looks until the Green Toad Doctor answered, "This is actually the first time we have assembled the potion, seeing as no one has ever been burned by Bowser before. This is a remedy from the Stars, which I believe we can trust… but we do not know anything about the side-effects of the medicine, or how long they last. I'm sorry."

Luigi sighed, head in his hands. "Look at her!" he nearly whispered at last. "There must be **_something _**else you can do."

Four heads shook sadly. "I'm sorry," they repeated.

Defeated, Luigi sat back and put a hand on his forehead. He then felt a hand on his shoulder—looking up, he saw it was Mario, who said confidently, "She'll be all right."

Hearing the definitive tone in his brother's voice, Luigi was comforted only slightly. When everyone else nodded and followed Mario's claim, his comfort grew. As if Angel could hear their voices in the darkness of her mind, hers tears lessened and the hysteria in her eyes diminished… if only slightly.

But the Crew would take what they could get.

...

_Angel had never known such pain._

_Of course, it was not corporeal but psychological—which, as she bitterly realized, made it all the worse. She had seen a flashing image of Luigi, concerned as he kneeled beside her, and had heard his voice. But the clearer picture was that of Bowser's dungeons. All her friends were collected there, their forms mangled and twisted so that they appeared grotesque. _

_Blood dripped from a few of the corpses… she'd been forced to watch the death of her companions. Not one stood beside her now, except for little Bowser Jr., who'd had his tongue removed so that he could not speak words of comfort to her. The bright light in his eyes had diminished, leaving shadows in its place._

_Staring at the bodies did not help. Memories flooded her brain of the short times she'd spent with everyone… tears rolled down her pale face. Angel could taste the salt on her lips. _

_In a row, they were all aligned—even Daisy and Jake—hanging gruesomely from the shackles of the wall. Angel was confined to the dungeons until she promised to serve Bowser… Bowser Jr. remained to comfort her, his little hand clasped against hers. But seeing all those she loved dead in front of her, it did not make much difference. She would never side with Bowser._

_Not after he killed Luigi._

_She could hear his voice now, as if from a dream…_

_ "__Angel!" he called distantly. Angel wished she could respond, but the deaths of her friends had shocked her into a dismal silence. "Angel!" Luigi said her name again, but he was not as far away as before. "Wake up!"_

Suddenly Angel could see different surroundings around her. For a flickering moment, she was lying on a pure white bed. The sound of gasping entered her ears, and her eyes found a pair of blue ones that she would recognize even through a blizzard.

"Wake up," he whispered, seeing her gaze on him.

She blinked. _The dungeons returned_—the white bed—where was she?

"Where…" she croaked, but she instantly regretted it. Even the mere volume with which she spoke pained her.

He smiled sympathetically and with a substantial amount of hope. "The ship. You're in the infirmary."

Angel gasped, pain following it. She had blinked and _been brought back to the dungeons, where Bowser stood in front of her. Bowser Jr. cowered against the wall, too afraid to stand up to his father._

_"__Have you made up your mind?_" _Bowser asked._

_Angel didn't respond. She could only wonder if she'd hallucinated the white room—a gut feeling told her she hadn't. It was real._

_And so she answered,_ _"__I don't have to. You aren't real. You're my imagination. You're in your castle. I'm on the ship._" _As she spoke, Angel noticed that her surroundings were growing gradually fainter. _

_Toadette's corpse disappeared from the wall._

_Encouraged, Angel continued. "The others aren't dead. They're watching over me right now, making sure I'll get better. My friends aren't gone—you only __**want **__me to think they are."_

_One by one the bodies faded from the walls. Blood traces also disappeared, melting off the cobblestone. Daisy, Jake, Toad, Wario, Waluigi, Boo, Dry Bones, Birdo, Yoshi, Peach, Mario…_

_"__I should've known this wasn't real. You'll never take anyone alive. Love always wins, not power. This isn't real, simply my greatest fear. I know he's alive. I know Luigi's here."_

_At last, a bright light shone from the wall. Suddenly he was standing in front of her, though Angel had no idea how it happened. A blessing from the beings the Crew served, she supposed—she knew who they were. The Stars. The Stars brought him back._

_"__You did it._" _His voice rang around the black chamber. Bowser Jr. leaped up and down, hopping and shouting with delight. His voice was back—he barreled towards Angel and jumped into her arms. Laughing, Angel bade him return to the ship. Like the rest of her friends, Bowser Jr. disappeared._

_"__You brought us back," Luigi clarified, smiling down at Angel as she stared up at him in wonder. She didn't remember sitting down on the floor. Maybe she hadn't noticed._ _"Now it's time to go home. Take my hand._"

_Luigi outstretched a hand towards Angel, who saw the real smile on his face._ _"Just take my hand, and you'll wake up. Why don't you trust me?_"

_"__I __**do **__trust you," Angel said, and she took his hand._

A flash of bright light surrounded her, and Angel gasped, launching up to a sitting position, where she was greeted by exclamations of relief from all her friends. It **_had _**been a dream, she realized.

Hiccupping a few times, the tears that followed were ones of joy. As she moved her hand absently to brush away the streaks, she was startled to see that her hand was intertwined with Luigi's, as if it had been reality.

But it wasn't. They were alive.

A great burden lifted off her shoulders.

"You're alive," he whispered, Luigi's other hand making its way to her face. Just before it rested against the side of her face, he stopped, as if wondering whether it was okay. When Angel smiled, he knew it was all right—brushing her tear-streaks away, he shook his head. "You're alive…" he repeated.

"Of course I am," Angel responded. She winced at how weak her own voice was. She wished she hadn't said anything at all when Luigi heard her frail tone and said, "Don't talk. Go straight to sleep." He poked her forehead, knowing Angel couldn't do anything to stop him.

Glaring playfully at him, she muttered, "I'll bite you, you know."

"Ha. I don't doubt you." He didn't try again. Meanwhile, the others were clamoring to one another. After hearing Bowser Jr.'s tale and seeing the red mark on his face to back it up, the trio had become immensely popular.

Before Luigi could push him away, Bowser Jr. hopped up to Angel, who smiled upon seeing him. "Hey, you're all right!" he exclaimed excitedly.

She shuffled and winced again. "More or less," she replied quietly, ruffling his hair like she had done on the castle.

"Naptime for Angel!" he cried as he bounded out of the room. Angel had to keep from laughing at his euphoria.

At last, Luigi was the last one in the room. The Toad Doctors began preparing busily for other remedies, seeing the trauma the previous one had put Angel under. As they did this, Luigi edged closer to her as she tried to find sleep.

Though she did not know it, Angel looked like an angel. Her face was not as pale as before; some rosy color returned to her cheeks. Though her dress was shredded and torn, the way it caressed her body made it appear as a faerie's dress. Her burned hair had been cut away, the rest of it scattered around her pillow and framing her face. Her deep breathing was hypnotic and relaxing, yet as Luigi watched her, Angel's eyes opened. The corners of her lips twisted to form a smile—he caught his breath.

"You shouldn't be here," she teased lightly. "The Toad Doctors ordered me rest, did you not hear?"

At last he regained the will to speak. Reflecting her smile, Luigi answered, "Screw Doctor's orders."

Angel laughed weakly, which was a good sound to hear. Despite the fact it was soft and almost inaudible, it proved that she was feeling better—feeling happy. "How are you?" he then asked seriously.

Not wishing to return to dull reality, joked Angel, "Just fine. Other than feeling like I've been put in a toaster oven, of course. Is it just me, or is it hot in here?"

"Sorry, that might've been me," said blue Toad Doctor as he came out of his office. He gave them a sympathetic smile and said nothing about Luigi's refusal to leave—the smile turned genuine hearing Angel's stifled giggles.

Taking Luigi's hand again, Angel smiled and murmured, "You aren't leaving?"

"Are **_you_**?"

"Not for the world."

"Good to hear. You have people who care about you, you know," Luigi said, looking for the exact words he'd used when Angel had been lying in a hospital with pills in her hands. The words he'd used to convince Angel to live. "Your friends, family. And me. You aren't leaving me just yet. And someday soon, I'll see you. I promise. And I'll never…" he stopped, not being able to say the last words.

He glanced down to see what Angel would do. She was staring at him as if he was from another planet. "It was you," she sighed, her eyes closing. "It was you…"

She fell silent.

Squeezing her hand, whispered Luigi, "Angel, say something. Please. Even if you're mad at me."

Angel's eyes opened, and Luigi was shocked to find they were brimming with tears.

"Mad at you?" she echoed with disbelief. "Why in the world would I be mad at you? Look at what you've done," she whispered, waving a hand around her. "You kept me alive to give me everything I've ever wanted. Friends, a good life… love. How can I be mad at you when you've made all of this possible?"

He shook his head. "I've hardly done that. This has been your destiny since the day you were born. I'm just… here. Me."

"You're so much more than that. You're everything to me now." Her fingers tightened over Luigi's hand. "Don't you trust me?"

He nodded, unable to say anything more. Feeling that he should finish what he'd started saying, Luigi resumed, "I'll never let you out of my sight again, Angelica Claire."

She laughed again. "That wasn't what you said before."

"You remember?"

She nodded. "Have you forgotten?"

"Of course not. But how can I say that I'll never let you get hurt when you've been injured through my fault? I promised both of us that I'd keep you safe. You've been everything **_but _**safe with me," he finished dejectedly. But that despair faded when he saw the look in Angel's eyes.

"You listen to me," she whispered, her eyes fluttering. The lull of sleep was getting harder for her to resist. "I would rather go through the burning gates of hell with you than remain on earth alone. I'd follow you anywhere, just as you have done for me. And who knows, maybe misfortune will… leave us alone for a while…" With that, Angel dropped off into sleep, her grip slackening on Luigi's hand.

Seeing her at peace for the time being, he knew Angel should be left to rest. Knowing that she would be safe, Luigi kissed her forehead before walking back towards the dining hall, where surely Peach, Birdo, Toadette would be waiting for him to hear the latest news.


	12. Chapter 11

For another week Angel remained in the hospital wing. Most of the time she was asleep, healing and reviving. Every time her eyes were open, someone was there, waiting for her to wake—but strangely, it was never Luigi.

She wondered, with a sick feeling in her stomach, if he regretted telling her the truth of her past…

Such thoughts followed her until she was allowed to leave seven days after arriving back on the ship. Angel was relieved to set foot outside the infirmary's doors. She'd seen enough of it to last a lifetime.

The first thing Angel did was set off for her friends. Worried that Boo would be lounging in her room to scare the crap out of her again, she turned to the dining hall, where Toadette immediately bombarded her with a hug. Seeing as it was dinnertime, Angel was surprised that only she, Toadette, Dry Bones, and Yoshi were in the room.

All the same, her friends greeted her enthusiastically. Yoshi and Dry Bones both exclaimed, "So glad you aren't dead!"

"Like me!" Dry Bones added thoughtfully. Angel could see him absentmindedly grasping for a bottle of wine to celebrate her survival, and she tried not to break out into laughter. Her back was still more than sore—it hurt even to breathe deeply.

But Angel was very glad to be out of the hospital wing, even so.

Spending about half an hour eating slowly and talking to her friends, Angel suddenly realized that she hadn't seen Luigi in a good seven days. Had he even been to the infirmary to see her, she wondered?

"Hey, Toadette," she said at last. Normally Angel would've asked Yoshi, but seeing as there was a sushi-bar currently stuffed in his mouth… "Have you seen Luigi anywhere?"

Toadette grinned. "I think he said he was going to the Heavens."

"The Heavens?" Angel asked, not familiar with the term. "I've no idea where that is."

Toadette gasped once and snapped her fingers. Angel noticed the lighting in the room suddenly changed, and out of instinct, she looked up.

When she did, she saw the ceiling covered with stars and small planets throughout the space. Off in the distance, the same glowing white light was noticeable. The whole sight was beautiful—Angel was instantly reminded of Wario and the first scene he'd pulled up when he'd snapped **_his _**fingers.

"This is it," Angel murmured to herself. She wasn't completely aware she'd spoken aloud. "This is where your masters live. The Stars, aren't they? It's beautiful…"

Her friends all smiled and nodded, and Dry Bones hopped out of his seat, abandoning his drink. "Here, newbie, I'll bring you to the Heavens."

"You can't call me the newbie anymore!" protested Angel.

"Eh, I'll do want I wanna," Dry Bones objected stubbornly, and he marched off, leaving Angel to follow or be left behind.

Down a few familiar corridors they traveled. Angel couldn't help but wonder if Dry Bones and the rest of her friends were pulling her leg, because she already knew this path. It led to the Star Pad.

And that was exactly where Dry Bones halted and said with a mocking bow, "Your carriage, my lady."

"But…" said Angel confusedly. "We're at the Star Pad…"

Dry Bones grinned wickedly at her and said, "Remember, darling, that the Star Pad is not just our number one hang out spot. There's a good reason for it. This is the entrance to the Heavens. Only a Crew member can pass through the Gateway."

Angel cocked her head sideways. "How do I do that?"

"You take the Star given to you at your transformation and hold it over the Star on the Star Pad," explained he as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Then the Gateway will open, and you may ascend the stairs leading to the Heavens. You try."

Hoping she wouldn't make a fool of herself—Dry Bones would never let her hear the end of it—she took the crown off her head and gazed at it. All of a sudden, it glowed silver.

And there floated the little Star in the crown's place. It made a chirping noise before hovering over the symbol of the Star Pad. Once it was there, a blinding flash of white obscured her vision.

When she was able to open her eyes, Angel looked to see a spiral staircase awaiting her. The steps were crafted of a golden yellow, almost as if they were created from light itself. Being the Gateway to the Heavens, she found that entirely possible.

"Well, don't just stand there," Dry Bones drawled with amusement. "Start climbing!"

Angel realized she had been staring at the stairway for a few seconds. Shaking her head, she stepped towards it—"Aren't you coming?" she asked.

Dry Bones shook his head. "I have no interest witnessing your snogging," he said dismissively. "But have fun."

Angel glared at his back as he cackled and walked away.

"Snogging?!" she muttered with malcontent. "I don't **_snog…_**"

And with that, Angel stepped into the Gateway, where a stream of golden light enveloped her and took her to the Heavens.

...

It was even more beautiful in person.

Even though she had seen it on the ceiling of the dining hall, the beauty and majesty of the place was much more real in person. The glowing of the Stars was brighter, more alive—a few comets strayed across the horizon that she hadn't noticed before. The planets off the sides of the gilded pathway seemed larger, more lifelike.

And of course, the familiar golden white glimmer was all too apparent in the distance. But now that Angel got a closer look at it, she realized that the light was not that of a sun, but of a very large and impressive castle.

She took a tentative step forward, glancing warily at the black of space contrasting the light of the Stars. Satisfied that a tear of space wouldn't swallow her, Angel took another. Soon enough, she stood ten feet away from the Gateway that would lead back to the ship.

Gazing at the sight around her, mused she to herself, "What would you call space in space if there is no air here?"

A voice behind her said, "Ah, who knows?"

Angel resisted a smile. "Obviously **_you _**don't."

"Neither do **_you._**" Angel tried not to jump at the sudden closeness of Luigi's voice, but she couldn't keep back a shiver as his arms wound around her sides. She suddenly thought herself quite moronic, thinking that he might've been reluctant to let go of the truth of her past. "I can't believe I forgot to show you this place."

Smiling, sighed Angel, "It's all right. You revealed your other secret—the garden."

"It isn't nearly as impressive as the Heavens," retorted he dismissively, his eyes on the castle far to the horizon. "This place is much better."

Angel smiled inwardly and leaned back into his hold. "They're both beautiful. I can't judge which is lovelier… the garden or the Heavens."

"Option C. You forgot one," he remarked mildly.

"Or the sunset over the ocean," Angel sighed. "I forgot that one. Thanks."

He frowned somewhat. "I was talking about you, but that works too."

Angel flushed and hoped he couldn't see it, what with the faint light of the Heavens. "Um…" she said, about to say that there was no way in the Heavens that she could possibly compare to any of nature's or the Star's scenes. But that was when he added, "Option D is it," and Angel knew she would just be fighting a losing battle.

As it was, she just hoped that her blush would fade.

No such luck.

She was about to say something else—Angel wasn't entirely sure what—but a blast from far away sounded through the air. The solidified light path wobbled dangerously before regaining its composure, and the light she had accustomed to was dimmed.

Angel glanced up to see a large blotch of black obscuring the light of the castle so far away. She gasped and watched it grow bigger and bigger… but right before her eyes, the foundation of the castle began to strike back and force the darkness into nothingness so the light could reign supreme again.

Luigi sighed heavily behind her. "Looks like another one got in."

Though Angel was confused, she didn't say anything. She wondered what could break through the light of the palace like that. And then she realized—"There are other things more powerful than Bowser's minions, aren't there?"

After a pause, Luigi nodded.

"Something darker than they," she added, to receive another nod. "They are the opposite of Stars."

At her quick conclusions, Luigi jolted somewhat. Then he wrapped his arms around her again, but Angel could feel the tension in his arms as he said, "Yes…" rather reluctantly.

"You know you have to tell me sometime," murmured Angel, looking down at the light path beneath her feet. "If you do now, at least I'll know what we're in danger from. We can take steps to change our peril into safety."

Another sigh came from behind her as Luigi said, "I suppose you're right."

Angel waited expectantly, but when he didn't say anything, she said, "Well?"

"I'm trying to think of how to explain this," he frowned to himself. Another few seconds passed before he said, "All right, story time.

"At first, when the universe first came into existence, there was absolutely nothing. No stars or planets or light or dark. Change was almost impossible. But by some miracle, one day there was a spark. The spark grew larger, and then there was light. But with light, there had to be darkness.

"So the Light and the Darkness were born. They worked together in harmony… A thousand years later, two Stars were also born. One was a good Star, ready to help whoever needed it. This Star was bright and helpful, if not cryptic, but the other Star was the exact opposite. The second Star was dark and ill-tempered; it often enjoyed wreaking havoc on whoever it chose. Naturally, the Light and the Darkness took favorites.

"Soon, more Stars and Ztars, as we call them, were born. There were many, and the hatred between Stars and Ztars never ceased. Because of this, a great and long war began.

"The Stars and the Ztars powers were matched exactly. There were no advantages or disadvantages. Whenever one Star would die, so would a Ztar. The two sides couldn't do anything unless they wanted to hurt themselves in the process. Their powers were as equally matched as those of the Light and of the Darkness. But one day, the Darkness created Bowser to help them win the war. Bowser was, and still is, very powerful, and the Stars did not want the Ztars to win just because of him. So the Stars created Mario to balance out forces.

"At this, the Ztars became angry, so they created Bowser Jr. And once again, to balance out the forces, the Stars created me. And the war continued. But after a while, it became evident there would be no winner. So to give us a place to stay, the Stars created the cruise ship and our world. They created Peach and Daisy to help us defend ourselves, and also they created Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and Dixie Kong along with DK Island so that whenever we needed it, they would be there to help.

"For Bowser, the Ztars created both Bowser Island and Bowser Castle. They supplied him with deadly weapons and strategic traps. Bowser Jr. took refuge there as well, and to help him with the war, the Ztars created all of Bowser's minions: Magikoopas, Koopinators, Hammer Bros, Bloopers, Bomb-ombs, and Goombas. Eventually, the Goombas got tired of being treated so poorly and they came over to our side. To help us out even more, the Stars created Koopas and Shy-Guys and Yoshi. Thus, with the five of us, the Mario Crew was born.

"Over the time span of five-thousand years, the Crew has increased to twelve members… until a month ago, when you arrived. Since then, our number has moved exponentially, gaining five Crew members due to your arrival. So you see why, twenty-one years ago, First Star took such an interest in you. You, your kindness, has brought power and security to this group."

Angel stared at him, mesmerized by the tale, as he sighed and spun her around to face him. Then, said Luigi, "So you see, Angelica Claire, we knew you were somebody even though you doubted it. You're more than that."

Almost as if he were in a new light, Angel stared at him. Luigi's words rang in her ears… she found it very hard to believe that **_she _**had brought the Crew such fortune.

But instead of expressing this, Angel only smiled ruefully. Grabbing one of his hands, she murmured, "You do know that Bowser is attempting to reenact the war, yes?"

"**_What?!_**"

With a mild smirk, mused Angel, "I'm taking that as a no. Well, Bowser captured me to kill me at the right time so it'd make you weaker. Then, when he finished you off, he could take Mario one on one. Mario would probably lose without you, and once he's gone, he said, 'the rest of you would be as easy as roasting a Goomba.' My point is that Bowser now knows who the balance between the two sides is. It's **_you_**. If you aren't there helping Mario, he would be overcome. All Bowser really needs to do now is kill you. And the only way to make you weak enough for him to accomplish that is to kill me… it's just one big killing fest for him."

Luigi watched her intently as she spoke and realized just how much sense everything she said was. When Angel finished, he blinked once before mumbling, "That… actually makes sense…" Blinking again, he then asked, "How did Bowser find all of this out? Normally, he doesn't play strategy like this."

Angel's smile grew sad. "This wasn't his plan."

"Then whose…" his question faded as Luigi's eyes narrowed. "Bowser Jr.," he then snarled, all benevolence evaporating from his gaze. Angel could suddenly see why he was such as asset to the Stars… with his expression, it looked as if Luigi alone could fight a thousand Ztars and win.

She froze before finding her voice. "Luigi, he's just a child," she implored, her eyes still sad. "To be alone on that island with a father that didn't care about you unless you came up with a murderous plot! What would **_you _**have done if you were in Bowser Jr.'s shoes? He was a child alone on a dark island. He didn't have a choice, and it's not his fault!"

Angel actually hiccupped out of despair, and Luigi turned to look at her. Noting the true concern she had for the little dragon, he sighed but relinquished his steely gaze. "I suppose that **_would _**be hell…" he acknowledged at last.

Relief spread through Angel, but that was short-lived as Luigi murmured, "But I **_can't _**be the balance of this war… at least… not alone." He turned to Angel and said, "I'm not weak enough to be destroyed unless we're both killed. There's more than what we've just uncovered, Angel. I didn't know that when First Star said we would play a gamble… but now I understand."

"What?" Angel asked, confused about the sudden topic change.

Luigi turned back to face her. "When First Star showed you to us twenty-one years past, he informed us that you were not only the strengthening of the Crew, but our potential destruction. At the time, we didn't know how that was possible. But now that everything has been put together… can't you see, Angel? You are the one to give us the power we need to challenge the Ztars, if Bowser truly is attempting to reenact the war. If he wants to strike us, we are more well-defended by almost half of what we were before because of you. But if you're killed… so are we all. You said Bowser compared us to a chain, Angel—that's not true. The only way our chain breaks is if **_you _**are killed.

"First Star said that his father, the Darkness, knew about the gamble of bringing you towards us. None of us understood what this meant before. But now it makes perfect sense. By making us stronger, you also make us more vulnerable." Luigi stopped and shook his head. Looking back at the bright palace, he murmured, "But we had no choice. We needed you…"

He trailed off, leaving Angel to understand this on her own. She felt as if she'd just been punched in the stomach. The fact that if she died, so would all her friends… it was almost too much to handle.

"Then what do we do?" whispered she helplessly.

Luigi's gaze was still on the castle. As Angel watched him, brightness overcame his eyes. "We get help. We protect you as much as we can. With the powers of First Star and the Crew combined, no one can touch you."

Angel nodded once before realizing he'd just mentioned First Star personally. "Wait, you mean… the leader of the Stars… is going to keep me hidden? How are we going to find him?"

At last, Luigi's eyes turned back to her. With a faint smile, he corrected, "Not hidden, no. We'll strengthen your power—and everyone else's while we're at it. First Star harnesses his energy and stores it away for desperate times. If the war is to restart, this could very well qualify. He'll enhance our abilities, make us stronger, faster, more powerful. And as for finding him…" He pointed to the white castle that had captivated Angel's attention since first she'd laid eyes on it. "Well, he's right there."

"And we're just going to saunter in unannounced?" Angel squeaked.

Luigi smiled gently at her timidity. "There's nothing to be worried about, Angel. First Star hates formalities. We're on very good terms. He'll see us."

Slightly comforted, Angel nodded. "And… when are we going?"

Luigi shrugged. Then he smiled and grabbed her hand. "How about now?"

Angel was about to respond, but someone behind them cleared his throat.

The duo turned around to find the rest of the Crew standing there, Mario in the lead. Seeing them, Luigi groaned. "Wonderful. How long have **_you _**lot been standing there?"

"Just long enough to hear about Bowser's evil plan," Peach said, carefully avoiding the fact that it was really Bowser Jr.'s evil plan. Angel could see his gaze drop to the light path as if he'd suddenly found a very interesting sparkle.

Luigi sighed and rolled his eyes. "So you heard pretty much everything, then."

Boo and Dry Bones snickered. "Well, actually, we arrived right about story-time—hoping to catch you in the act—you two are disappointing."

Angel and Luigi glared malevolently in their direction as the specters continued commenting as such. They quickly let go of each other's hands. Toadette and Peach scowled at the ghosts and threatened to throw their shoes at them.

"**_Anyway,_**" huffed Angel before things could get out of hand. "You all heard Bowser's plan?"

They nodded.

"Good. Then I won't have to repeat myself. Now let's get going!"

Jake rose a hand and asked then, "How are we going to get there? Not that I don't like walking, but that's no short distance," he pointed to the castle.

Mario smiled cryptically and responded, "The Stars will help." Then he let out an earsplitting whistle.

In reply to his summons, seventeen glimmering Stars came up to the Crew. Angel could see the brightness they radiated and knew that she could get used to the Heavens. They stopped in front of the Crew and glittered… it seemed to be their way of talking… "We are the Star Transporters, Angelica Claire," the leader said, gazing at her. An aura of hope buzzed around him. "Long have we awaited your arrival. The prophecy, however, is all but complete. The first step of your journey has been taken—now you must see the path through to the end. You have no other choice."

Angel listened to what the Star had to say, but she did not grasp what he meant. A prophecy… was that how First Star came to rest on her? Did his spell craft her future?

"We are able to take you to his castle," the leader continued, now gazing at Mario. "To those who have not ridden before," he said, glancing at the five newcomers in turn, "do not let go, or you shall be lost in space. The Heavens is a vast kingdom, and tracking spells are scarce now. Be careful."

After he was done speaking, the Stars lowered themselves. A sudden glowing came from them, and all turned away. When they looked back, the Stars were no longer in their true form—they had taken on the appearance of humans.

The females were just as tall as the three princesses, and they wore dresses of golden yellow, though their feet were bare. White, shimmery hair glistened elegantly down their backs, and their skin was pale with the same glow. Their eyes were a mesmerizing molten gold.

The males were taller than the females, and they wore golden jeans and shirts of the same color. Their feet also remained bare. White hair covered their foreheads in messy mops, slightly obscuring their molten gold eyes.

Angel and the other four newbies watched as their friends each took the hands of one of the awaiting Star Transporters, before realizing they were supposed to do the same.

The leader of the Transporters walked up to Angel, who gazed upon him. The interest in his eyes was clear as he said, "Take my hand, Angelica Claire."

His voice was smooth and enticing. The beauty of Light and her creations was explained firsthand… Angel could not help but wonder what the Ztars appeared as in their human form.

Remembering the gentle command she'd been given, Angel took the pale hand outstretched towards her. She was suddenly struck by the realization of something strange—the Heavens was the domain of Stars. Was it possible that Stars were angels, Ztars devils?

"Many beliefs are spread about us," the leader said. Angel gaped at him as he continued, unabashed. "Whether we are spoken about as angels, Stars, or guardians, they are all the same, all based upon us. The Heavens is where souls travel to when they die. They are reincarnated into whatever belief system they should like… if their soul finds eternal rest or is born into another physical form on their planet or is transformed into a Star is their choice."

"You can read my mind," Angel murmured. It was hard to not stare.

The leader smiled down at her. "We can do many things, Angelica," he answered lowly. "What remains to be seen is if we can protect you. Do not let go of my hand."

Feeling Angel's grip around his fingers tighten, the leader of the Star Transporters burst off through space.

Angel's feet were suddenly off the light path and hovering over space. The Star beside her held his free hand out, and a ball of melted energy was held in it. The energy was directed to the castle—if Angel didn't know better, she would say that the light source of the palace was guiding the light source of the Star.

"You are correct," the leader said with some amusement. "I can see firsthand why you were chosen."

A realization dawned upon her. "You said a prophecy was made about me," she recollected. "What did you mean?"

"Alas, I do not know very much about it," he responded quietly. "But I will tell you what information has been bestowed upon me. As far as I know, you have been brought to the Crew by First Star's own making. He found you and recognized you for what you were—nearly a light source in itself. The Master used much energy to discover you, Angelica, and because of that, Fate gave him another note for such determination.

"It was a small scroll depicting your **_own_** fate. It would open for First Star alone, and he was ordered never to speak of it. The single thing he told us was that it was a prophecy of your services toward the Crew—and that it did not outwardly tell of the effects of the war. Only that you played a great part in it for our sake… but we were not told if it would be enough.

"Shortly after First Star read the prophecy, dark magic spiked up. It appeared the Darkness's powers had grown more nefarious after such a long sleep. Once the truce had been called of the war, Mother Light had spread herself out to all beings in the universe so that love was a practice everywhere. Naturally, the Darkness took the opposite approach. He waits even now for the day when the war will start again, safe in the hidden stronghold of the Ztars. That is why we need you, Angelica. You give us a power Mother Light no longer can.

"The prophecy tells us of what you have done… and what you still have yet to do."

Angel watched him as he spoke. The Star did not look at her but kept his cool gaze on the castle in front of her friends and the other Stars. She had taken in so much information that day… it swam around her brain uneasily.

Then, asked she, "Why did you believe I would try to turn back?"

A twisted smile appeared on the Star's face. "I do not doubt that you shall stay beside your friends," he answered after a pause. "I only spoke the truth, not what I believe you shall do. There is no going back for you now, Angelica. It is much too late for that."

His tone of voice made her shiver. It sounded like he expected much evil to occur within a very short time period… was it possibly related to her arrival?

"Evil was stirring long before you set foot on the ship," he answered calmly.

Angel was comforted by the Star. "What is your name?"

He looked down at her once more, bemused. Then, with a smile he said, "Starlans."

Left with no other questions, Angel fell silent as she thought about what she'd just been told. So much had been hidden from her beforehand…

Lost in the labyrinth of her mind, Angel did not hear Luigi saying her name until he reached out and took her other hand. "Angel!"

Angel started and finally looked at him. With a sheepish smile on her face she said, "I'm sorry. I was just… thinking," she finished lamely. But he smiled all the same.

"Must've been quite a conversation." Was it just her, or did Luigi gave Starlans a glare? Maybe it was just her.

Whether she imagined it or not, Starlans did not respond.

Another few minutes passed before the Star said, "We are getting close to the castle. Soon you shall be standing atop the steps of Light-Essence."

"Light-Essence?" Angel asked aloud.

"The name of the castle," Luigi responded beside her. She smiled, grateful for the explanation, and turned back to face it.

Closer, the castle was much more than magnificent. It sparkled and glimmered as the sun itself would; each inch was made of white or golden light. The foundation of the castle was strong, and the Crew could see Stars floating guard over the borders of Light-Essence. A simple white flag hung from the top of the castle, but every now and then, a Star would whiz by it and it would fly proudly through space for a few seconds, ablaze with color.

The Star Transporters released the Crew on the top step leading up to the castle. Angel turned to thank Starlans for what he had told her, but he only smiled and said, "You have a right to know," before bowing. He glanced over her one last time with a sincere smile before turning away with the rest of his companions.

Angel watched his retreating back until it was nothing more than a speck of white light in the distance. A glowing made her blink, and when she looked again, Starlans was back in his true form—a Star.

"Come on," muttered Luigi, pulling her arm.

"Hey!" Angel protested. He was yanking rather hard. "What's the matter?"

"Stars, that's what," he replied curtly. Angel dug her heels into the ground and wouldn't let herself be moved any more. Glaring at him, she waited for a further explanation. Hearing rather than seeing her resolve, Luigi rolled his eyes and said, "Stars are mysterious beings. Enticing and deadly too. They tell you something you've always wanted to hear and leave you wanting more. Before you know it, you're back to them over and over again until they own you completely. It strengthens their power. And it's not just because they're so knowledgeable that people find themselves drawn toward them, either."

Angel frowned heavily and threw her hands up in the air. "How can you possibly think that I'd succumb to a Star when I'm already in love with **_you?!_****"**

She threw her hands up to her mouth as the rest of the Crew stared at her. Luigi himself finally turned around to face her with a surprised look on his face.

Blushing scarlet, Angel murmured through her hands, "I didn't say that," and rushed off to where another Star was beckoning the Crew. Luckily, this one was in his true form.

Once Angel reached the Star, he glimmered in amusement before saying, "Come. I can lead you to him, Angelica. Your friends know the way."

He floated off, leaving Angel to follow him. She did so without removing her hands from her beet-red face, wondering why in the **_Heavens _**she said such a thing… or at least, why she said such a thing so loudly…

Her mind was quickly taken off her outburst upon seeing the structure of the castle, however. White columns with intricate etchings of history surrounded her, and windows were every five feet, allowing for Angel to view the space outside. The many planets and villages were perfectly visible from this part of the castle, and it astounded her to see so much life even in space…

"Life is everywhere you look," the Star mused quietly with a gentle smile.

Angel smiled back before remembering what Luigi had said earlier, and her eyes fell back to the view about her. But of course, her brain reverted to the comment she'd said in response to his explanation…

That was when she heard someone talking behind her. As she listened, Angel realized they weren't talking, but laughing. She looked behind her to see Boo and Dry Bones both chortling, undoubtedly at her previous outburst and Luigi's expression afterward—Angel looked both sad and embarrassed once more before whipping forward and walking beside the Star guide instead.

A sudden collapsing of bones echoed in the chamber, and Angel could hear Dry Bones complaining, "Aw, man, that wasn't cool!" Meanwhile, Boo seemed to be laughing until a blue light shone right in his face. "OUCH! Dude, what's your beef!"

"**_You,_**" Luigi muttered. He glared down at Dry Bones, who was struggling vainly to reassemble himself. "I'd stay down if I were you," he added threateningly.

Angel grinned as the ghosts tried to recover themselves. "Hey, mate, do me a favor and attach my arm—**_no, not that one, the other one!_**"

"How am I supposed to tell?! You're all bone!"

"Oh, **_really?_** I didn't know!"

With that, Luigi had reached Angel. She could feel her face heat up, but he just murmured, "They try it again, they'll get kicked in a much more painful place. I'll even let you do the honors," and that faded.

Quite at ease, Angel continued walking without any further embarrassment.

At last, the Star stopped them. "Wait here," he said smoothly, floating through the largest set of doors Angel had ever seen in her life. For a couple minutes they waited for their guide to reappear… she wondered what lay beyond those doors…

"You may come inside when you are ready," said the Star's voice.

Angel took a deep breath, steeling herself for whatever she might find. Then, with Luigi by her side, she took a step forward into the throne room.

White columns of light upheld the foundation of the room. None of the corridors or rooms Angel had passed had been as bright as this. Tables made of a white marble sat around the sides of the room, as if they had been conference tables unceremoniously pushed to the edge. A long gold rug led to the very end of the room, in which a white throne gilded with golden sparks sat proudly.

And in that throne sat a man no older than Angel herself. He was different from the human form his subjects took—he was taller than they and composed himself with an immense dignity. His skin was not as pale, but still fair. He sparkled somewhat with an aura of power, and his eyes were a deeper shade of gold than Angel had yet seen. His white hair was so pale it was almost blond, carelessly brushed across one side of his face.

He looked almost normal… even his clothes suggested an attempt at a humanoid appearance. If it wasn't for the stiff posture, he would've looked like a regular mortal.

When the Crew approached the man sitting on the throne, all thought it safe to bow or curtsy. But the man just sighed. "Mario, Luigi… you know I hate formalities as such. I am nothing more than a Star."

He had the silkiest voice Angel had ever heard. Everything about him spoke of unnatural beauty, and it was this that made her retain her mind. It was all too… **_perfect. _**All the Stars she had met were. It was as if they had no flaws.

But every human had flaws.

"It seems I am in for a treat today," First Star continued with a small smile. "The entirety of the Crew is here. Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Wario, Toad, Waluigi, Boo, Dry Bones, Birdo, Toadette… and the more recent Crew members, it appears. Jake, Bowser Jr., Hammer Bro, Blooper… Angelica Claire."

His eyes rested on her for an unnerving moment. But unlike the other gazes Angel had withheld in the Heavens, First Star's was simply inquisitive and respectful, not full of scorn and secrets.

"Long have we awaited your arrival," declared First Star, rising from his throne. Angel's breath caught as she saw he was drawing towards her. "It has proved to be everything we hoped for. Strength from both within and without the Crew has been gained through your arrival… such strength proves to be invaluable at a time like this."

By this time, the leader of the Heavens was in front of Angel. She could feel the warmth radiating from his skin and shuffled uncomfortably. The Star smiled and brushed back a piece of her hair almost affectionately. She tried not to bristle.

"My apologies," he said with true sincerity. "I realize you do not know me as I do you. Time passes quickly when the rest of eternity stares you in the face."

First Star turned away, and at last Angel allowed herself to let out the breath she didn't know she was holding in.

"At any rate," he began again, gesturing to the rest of the Crew. "What brings you here, my friends? Have you perhaps discovered a plan?"

Mario smiled somewhat and said, "I propose you have already heard what we uncovered, based on your quick suggestions? If that is the case, then certainly you have also heard the purpose of our journey here to Light-Essence."

First Star laughed, a deep laugh tinted with gold. "Indeed I have. The truth in the statement cannot be denied. You wish for your skills to be enhanced? Very well—for a long time I have stored away my energy for this day. The Stars have long dreaded the reenacting of the war. And now it is near…"

With a wave of his hand, a ball of pure energy was summoned. First Star turned to Angel and said quietly, "Your essence requires the most protecting, and you will need the most willpower for this war out of all the Crew. Your destiny is not one that can be stopped, Angelica Claire, but perhaps I may help you on your journey…"

He then split the energy into seventeen separate parts and distributed it to the Crew. As the energy made its way into their bodies, each person could feel the impact it made. Angel felt stronger and readier for whatever the Darkness had to throw at her.

"That should be enough for today," hummed First Star once the glowing died down. "The rest shall be saved for darker times. It is wiser."

The remaining energy in the leader of the Heavens' hands disappeared, back to whence it had come. Angel breathed deeply; many of her comrades did the same. And though she was grateful for the strength she was given, Angel couldn't help but think about her destiny.

First Star turned to her and said, "You have many questions in your mind."

Slowly, Angel nodded. "How did you find me, out of all sources?"

"That is a story you have heard before," First Star replied patiently. His golden eyes bored into her blue eyes as he continued, "My spell was powerful enough to locate you."

"Perhaps I should have worded that correctly. **_Why _**was it I?"

The smile on First Star's face grew more genuine. "**_That _**was the correct query," he said with amusement. "That remains to be seen. For now, I can only tell you that your duty to this Crew was strong enough for me to locate you even though your resting place lay a million miles away. You have been chosen for great deeds, Angelica. One of the reasons you are so strong is because you are nearly a light source in itself. You have the aptitudes of a Star… many of a Star's powers are in you. For some reason, Fate and Mother Light alike have chosen you. I daresay we shall see why soon enough."

"It seems that time is the key answer to many of my questions," Angel mumbled.

"Time is the answer to **_all _**questions," First Star replied, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Fate is the premonition that allows us to live. It has promised us one thing only… that time is a key component to history and future alike."

His smile grew almost sad, yet still genuine. "I wish I could say more, Angelica Claire, but I know almost as little as you. Should you wish to find me again, I promise to answer your questions as I can and to protect you with all I am. My kinsmen have a different definition of protection than I do. I must apologize for that. Stars become restless with their infinite knowledge before the tide of a great imbalance. If the war is truly to reenact soon, the Stars shall become much like the angelic temptresses history once made them to be. But once all is revealed, we shall transform back to the personalities we normally are. Do not take our first impressions to be mysterious or cruel. Soon you may see us for who we truly are.

"Yet until then, Angelica Claire… until then, all of you… I shall say good-bye. If Fate favors us, our paths will cross again quickly."

Another blast of light erupted in front of Angel's eyes; when she opened them, she and the Crew found themselves standing on the Star Pad as if nothing had ever happened.


	13. Chapter 12

For a while, the Crew stood still. Angel's ears rang as she thought of what Fate was keeping secret. She longed to know… undoubtedly First Star would tell her if she showed him how much she cared. And why shouldn't she know, it was **_her _**destiny!

She was just about to open her mouth to say as much when Luigi put a hand on her arm and pleaded, "Don't, Angel. Please."

She closed her eyes in defeat. "Then I wish he'd never said anything at all. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. He could've at least told me that."

"The reason he didn't was because not even he knows, Angel," explained Mario. "Some things Fate keeps hidden even from First Star."

Angel shook her head. "Starlans told me that the scroll relating to me foretold of what I was going to bring to this Crew. He spoke of how the prophecy contained the effects of my arrival and participation in the war."

"First off, that does not mean the scroll included the steps you took to aid us. And secondly, you are **_not _**fighting in the war so long as I'm able to stop you. You've been hurt twice too many times already, and I'm not letting it happen again." Luigi narrowed his eyes in a pleading sort of way.

"How am I going to accomplish anything if I do nothing?" she whispered.

"You retain the legacy of the Crew if the rest of us are gone," he answered.

Slowly, Angel shook her head and stepped back. "That's not what this Crew is about! Leaving one behind for protection… your purpose for your living is to help the Stars, and so is **_mine _**now! You cannot stop me from doing what Fate wishes, for it will always have its way. Luigi, I know that you want to keep me safe, but the only place I'm safe is with you—not alone. These people," she gestured to the Crew standing about her, "are the only ones strong enough to protect me now. Keep me out of the war and the Ztars will come after me, alone and vulnerable. They know of my supposed value."

She paused, wondering if her words would have any effect. The rest of the Crew gazed at her admiringly, shifting their weight. They knew Angel was right. But she kept her eyes solely on Luigi, who had been glaring down at the deck floor. At last, they closed…

And then—"**_Damn _**it, Angelica Claire, you're going to be the death of me. Fine, fine. You're in the war. But remember it's a war, Angel, and I'm not letting you out of my sight."

Angel shrugged and said without thinking, "Why would I want you to?" Then she paused to think about what she'd just said. "I am **_really _**going to need to think before I speak…"

Before the rest of the Crew could laugh, Peach said, "What are we going to do now?"

Now that the question had been spoken aloud, everyone else began wondering the same. And then Mario replied, "If Angel and Jake are going to be in the war, we need them to be prepared. They can't go out on their own, no matter how many people surround them. They need to train, and I suspect that a review wouldn't be amiss for the rest of us either."

That was when Toadette raised a little hand. "I haven't trained either."

Hammer Bro and Blooper nodded. "We've never been able to use lasers before. Our powers weren't as great as they are now."

"Join the club, newbies," Dry Bones added, lazily hauling himself to the front to look at them. "Neither have I. We can start our own club. Trained people aren't allowed in our fort."

Wario scoffed and muttered, "What fort?"

"Relax," Daisy said, frowning. "We shouldn't be getting sidetracked. Angel and the others need to know what to do. They need to be protected."

Luigi also scowled in her direction. "Remind me when, exactly, you started caring for Angel's well-being?"

Daisy looked at Angel apologetically, hoping she would understand what she was trying to say. And Angel, being the forgiving person she was, saw it. After all, thought she, nothing bad really occurred from the previous antagonism. If anything, things became perfect.

So Angel nodded and smiled slightly.

Daisy then turned to Luigi and looked straight into his eyes. "Since I opened my eyes and realized she was family."

The Crew stared at her, shocked. There was no anger in her voice, and the blue in her eyes glimmered with truth. As this dawned upon them, the rest of the Crew knew that it was time to forget the past and let Daisy back in their hearts.

"Now that that is settled," said Mario with an upturn in his expression, "Daisy's right. The seven of you need to know what to do—well, six, since Bowser Jr. undoubtedly knows how to fight—when in combat. We'll train you as much as we can, but in the end, it's your own efforts that count."

His gaze was as serious as Angel had ever seen it; she knew that he was not happy to bring such danger before her. When Mario glanced her way, she only nodded, letting him know that she would be ready.

"And remember," continued he, "that it's not only skill that you must use in combat, but composition. When the sounds and sights of war settle in, a lot of new soldiers flee or hide. You have to prepare not only your body, but your mind. Battles are not just in books. They're real life."

Toadette giggled nervously. "That's scary, seeing how often you read…"

Mario smiled darkly. "It's not anything like the stories, Toadette. Trust me. It's much, much worse."

Angel could see the flashes of remembrance past his eyes. All was dark… yet small, resilient patches of light zipped past that darkness. She heard cries of desperation, and saw the familiar colors of the Crew…

She was brought out of the trance when Luigi grasped her hand and murmured lowly, "You don't have to do this, Angel. You can be safe here, or with First Star. He can protect you."

"No, Luigi. I can help you. I **_want _**to help you. I'm not going to wait in safety while the rest of you—including you—risk your lives. I don't want to remain blind, not even in the light."

Hearing the finality in her tone, Luigi realized he was defeated. Not letting go of her hand, he said, "Then let me teach you. I would like to make sure that you know what you need to know. You won't be fighting alone in the Crew. We'll all make sure of that."

Angel was comforted by his words. She smiled again and turned back to Mario, who was talking about the training schedule and how the different strategies would be learnt by those who'd just arrived or hadn't been trained before. "We'll need to have those who have remembered all the battle techniques to teach. If we truly did our duty well, they will still be second nature. Peach, Luigi, Daisy… that's the four of us. And Bowser Jr., I assume."

Bowser Jr. nodded feverishly and swelled up with pride. "I can help!"

Smiling, Mario nodded once. "The five of us, then. We'll need to do whatever we can to protect the others." He gave Luigi a significant glance, which was returned quickly.

"By that," Luigi muttered to Angel, glaring at her pointedly. "We mean **_you._**"

"Oh, is that what that means?" she asked sarcastically. "I couldn't have guessed."

Luigi looked at her in surprise and said, "Sarcasm? That's a new one. Boo and Dry Bones are converting you, I see."

Just then there was a snicker from above. Angel and Luigi looked up to see none other than Boo floating above them. "It was my wishful thinking," he said thoughtfully. "Angel must become one of us… Angel must become one of us…"

"Ha," Luigi glared at him. "Over my dead body."

Boo snickered again. "That can be arranged."

"Are you quite finished over there?" Mario asked, glowering at the ghost. Boo, however, did not appear intimidated. Quite the contrary, he blew a raspberry and mockingly bowed. "Please, **_do _**continue with your explanation, my liege. I shall remain your humble servant and shut my mouth, shall I?"

"This—is—not—a—joke," growled Mario through gritted teeth. For the first time, Angel could see why he balanced the forces between the Stars and Ztars. He appeared outright terrifying… the blue in his eyes burned into a dark gray so that was almost black. There was no benign smile upon his face. Instead, it was morphed into a snarl.

Angel glanced around the Crew. Not many of them seemed shocked by Mario's transformation… as a matter of fact, Peach wore an expression resembling his. Her sky-blue eyes were a fiery white, and her normally perfect teeth were ground together with anger. Her fists were balled, and her face paler than usual, making her look like a vengeful ghost herself.

Boo noticed this and relented. Though he gave them a familiar smirk, Angel could see the flash of alarm run through his eyes.

After making sure neither he nor Dry Bones would try anything else funny, Mario and Peach reverted back to normal.

"We'll start tomorrow," was all Mario said afterward, however. As the Crew sauntered away, he shot his brother another look. Angel glanced at Luigi out of the corner of her eye and saw the two of them were having a conversation using expressions instead of words.

When Mario's gaze flicked to Angel, she huffed, "Don't treat me like I'm not here!"

Luigi and Mario looked at her and laughed. Luigi turned to her then and said, "Why don't you go wait for me in the dining hall, then?"

For a moment, Angel considered refusing. She hated being talked about behind her back, but then he added, "Please," and she couldn't push herself to say no. So instead she sighed and said, "If it's really important… just…"

"I'll tell you what you need to know."

Angel smiled wistfully. "It appears I need to know everything." Then she walked away, wondering just what the two most powerful people of the Crew were going to talk about… was it even her at all? Were they going to try and keep her out of the war anyway?

Angel could find no end to the questions, so instead she tried to distract herself by sitting next to Boo and Dry Bones, who were having an engaging discussion about how Mario could sometimes be a very grumpy grouch.

...

About five minutes passed before the brothers entered the dining hall, and by this time Angel was just about ready to explode. She **_hated _**not knowing what people were saying about her, especially when she knew people were talking about her specifically.

As it was, she contented herself with pretending to be grabbing more pineapple from the bar to corner Luigi. She could see the smile on the corner of his mouth when she walked up and whispered, "Well?"

"We've decided that you are going to have to be trained a little more than the others," he murmured back. "You're much too important to Light, the Crew, and me, to lose."

Angel tried to restrain laughter. "Was that it?"

Luigi shook his head and watched Angel's eyebrows rise expectantly. "And the second part you're just going to have to wait to hear," he said, kissing her forehead and walking away quickly before she could figure out what he said.

But of course, Angel just followed him anyway. "What do you mean I can't hear it yet? Is it something different that you're talking about?"

"No."

"Then why can't you tell me?"

"For one, there are others around. Secondly, you're amusing when you're angry. Thirdly, we're not really sure what else we're going to have to do to protect you."

Angel's eyes narrowed and she tossed her hair impatiently. "Boo you."

"Yes?" called Boo, who was a couple seats down. "Have I been summoned to perform a heinous misdeed?"

Angel eyed Luigi considerably and replied, "Not yet. I'll let you know, though. Keep your ears open, sweetie."

Boo grinned evilly and saluted as Luigi said, "Ha-ha," without much interest.

And though Luigi was currently paying attention with a raised eyebrow to Dry Bones—who was trying to stick something gray and squishy in Wario's drink—Angel noticed something she didn't necessarily like.

To the right, where all the drinks were placed, Angel noticed that one suddenly turned a violent shade of red. As she watched, that gradually faded to a dull pink… she warily glanced at her own glass to see it was a pale pink and not at all as flat as the drink that had previously been red.

Something wasn't right, Angel knew that. Her eyes widened when, after about five minutes of Wario demanding what Dry Bones had put in his drink, Luigi walked up and grabbed the same drink she'd been rather uncertain about.

Just then, Angel felt something heavy brush past her. She looked around wildly, but there seemed to be nothing there. By this point, she knew that she might've been quite paranoid—imagining danger when there was none. It could've simply been nerves for her upcoming training lesson. But when Angel blinked and the drink colors remained different, she knew something was up.

"Hold on a second," she smiled sweetly, walking outside. She barely made it outside before seeing a flash of lightning.

Angel sprinted back into the dining hall, certain with what she had seen.

She sprinted towards Luigi and pointed to his drink. "Don't drink this," she pleaded. Luigi gave her a funny look and saw the look in her eyes. Then he laughed. "Oh, I see," he said, wagging a finger in her direction. "You used the opportunity of me not watching you to head over **_there,_**" he pointed to the bar where Yoshi and Toad were hiccupping together, each with bottles of wine in their hands.

"What—" Angel started, offended. "No! I'm not drunk!"

"Then what's the matter with you?" he asked, dodging as Angel tried to swipe the drink away from his hand. "Did Boo put a spell on you?"

"Hey! Now that's a bit premature, don't you think?" Boo glared at him.

"Well, did you?"

"No! But that **_is _**a good idea for the future…"

Luigi glared at him but turned back to Angel, who was beginning to become desperate. She knew the glass had been poisoned, she knew Bowser had done it—he had been waiting for the opportunity since she returned to the ship; she had to warn him. "Luigi, listen to me!"

He stared at Angel as if she'd just announced that she felt like eating plums. She **_hated _**plums. "I thought I was doing just that," he said, frowning slightly.

Angel held her hands out in a surrendering gesture. "You don't understand," she pleaded. "That glass… I saw the liquid turn red, it isn't safe… Bowser's island is beginning to flash with storms, I think this is poisoned…"

Luigi sighed and glared at Mario. "You see?!" he exclaimed, gesturing to Angel. "I told you this might happen!"

"I'M NOT DRUNK!" Angel screamed, her resolve beginning to weaken. "Luigi, it's **_poisoned, _**I saw it happen, I know it, you have to trust me!"

But instead of heeding her warnings, Luigi just smiled and walked toward her. Though he put the drink down, Angel was not comforted. "Angel, listen. It's been a very long day, you're very tired, and you've just healed. The medicine the Doctors gave you was very strong… go lie down, you'll feel a lot better. Trust me."

He smiled at her in a reassuring way, and though Angel wished she could do just what he said, she knew there was no way that would happen. Not when she knew the truth.

"I know this might sound ridiculous, but even so… **_please _**don't drink that," she begged, clasping her hands together. "You're right, it might be the medicine." Angel knew fully well it wasn't. "But please… for me."

Luigi just laughed once and pointed to the rest of the drinks, which were being closely safeguarded by Wario and Waluigi. "I don't really have much choice, do I?" he mused, a small smile on the corner of his lips.

Angel's nerves began escalating again.

Seeing that she was continuously growing worse, Luigi sighed and asked, "Do you want me to drink this to prove to you it **_isn't _**poisoned? Will that make you feel better?"

She shook her head wildly, not able to utter a sound. _No. Don't. Don't drink it. You'll __**die…**_

"Relax, Angel," Luigi laughed, but the sound was worried. "Go sleep it all off. You'll feel better in the morning." He didn't sound very confident with this last, however, and as he reached for the glass again, Angel finally regained the will to move.

She darted forward and snatched the glass. Luigi's eyes widened as he said, "Angel… what is going**_ on _**with you?"

Trembling, Angel murmured, not bothered by the fact that the whole Crew's attention was now captured. "I will prove it," she said before drinking from it.

The whole Crew froze to watch what happened.

After five seconds, Luigi smiled and held his hands out. He still believed Angel was incredibly jumpy Angel after such an exciting day. "There, see?" he asked, trying to soothe her. "Nothing hap—"

Angel dropped the glass—it hit the ground with an earsplitting shatter. Then she collapsed, her eyes rolling back into her head. She lost all feeling in her hands, legs, arms, head… she went completely and blissfully numb for five seconds before she opened her eyes and screamed.

"Angel?" cried Luigi, falling down to the ground beside her. He didn't know she couldn't hear his voice. "Angel! Wake up!"

The only response he got was another pitiful shriek of pain.

As Mario and Peach fell to the ground beside Luigi and Angel, they glanced worriedly over her body before realizing that Angel had been right all along. The poison was clearly visible in her bloodstream, turning her veins black with each passing second.

"Someone get the Toad Doctors!" Peach screamed; Toad had already sprinted out of the room. By that time, he was down the hallway in front of their office.

Mario shook his head. "We don't have enough time. Look!" He pointed to a vein very near Angel's collarbone and all along the side of her neck… all the veins were transformed black. Where Mario pointed, at the collarbone, the red and blue in the vein steadily darkened, descending to her heart.

He looked at Luigi, who was staring at Angel wildly, frantically trying to see if she would awake. "Luigi!" Mario called out at last, capturing his attention. "You have to draw it out!"

Luigi shook his head. "I've only done it once… I could kill her…"

"She's going to die!" Toadette screamed. Her little face was steadily turning pale as Angel screamed upon the floor.

"You have to do it NOW!" Mario repeated, pointing to the vein. The black was only inches from her heart.

Shaking, Luigi snapped his fingers. A spark of blue appeared, and then a light formed as a sort of drill. His face white, he carefully inserted the drill into Angel's chest. A bead of black blood popped up, and with his other hand, Luigi summoned a ball of blue light, holding it as steadily as he could over the small hole he'd made.

Black energy began oozing up from the hole, and the black stopped spreading. The remaining Crew members huddled around worriedly, watching Luigi extract the lethal poison from inside Angel's body.

Eventually, the black began disappearing from the veins into a ball of dark liquid above Luigi's hand. Immediately after he gathered it all, he vaporized it with blue light. As soon as that was done, he leaned over Angel and put a hand against her face.

Her eyes fluttered somewhat, but she didn't wake. Luckily, her breathing deepened and her screams had long since faded. It was as if she was simply sleeping… but there was still the matter of the pencil-eraser size hole in her chest.

"Here," Daisy murmured quietly, handing Luigi a yellow ribbon. He soaked up the loose blood with it and said, "Thanks, Daisy," before turning his attention back to Angel. It was true, she looked a lot better, but the fact that she had almost died **_again _**shook Luigi more than he cared to admit.

"Every time," he started shakily, "I think she's safe, it turns out she isn't. What else is she going to have to go through before she realizes that it's much safer on Earth?"

Mario noted the miserable tone his brother's voice had taken. "She realizes it, Luigi," he said quietly. "She just doesn't care."

Angel breathed out deeply, as if she'd heard what Mario had said and agreed with him. Knowing Angel, Luigi thought, that was entirely possible.

Just then, the Toad Doctors arrived. They quickly perused the situation and seemed impressed that it was already taken care of. All the same, they bent next to Angel and inspected her for a minute… at last, said blue Toad Doctor, "She should be fine in a day. You're lucky it was taken out as quickly as it was… Angel should be taken back to her cabin."

Luigi nodded once and, without a word, picked her up. He didn't look at anyone as he walked past, his unconscious Angel in his arms. She looked so frail in her pale state—he remembered when Angel was in a good condition… when she was the healthiest, happiest person ever…

Or did he?

He realized then that Angel, ever since the third day of the Crew, had been weakened: struck by lightning, captured, beaten, burned, poisoned… what else was going to be added to that list? How could he stop it?

A sick feeling came to Luigi's stomach when he thought maybe stopping it wasn't an option.

By that time, he reached Angel's cabin. But something stopped him from opening the door. He glanced at her sleeping face and realized what was wrong—he wished to know, until she awoke, that Angel would be safe. He didn't want to let her alone, not when there was no certainty she would be fine afterward.

So Luigi kicked open the door leading to Angel's cabin and set her on the bed gently. He glanced outside before closing it and walking back toward her. And even though he knew she couldn't hear, he said, "I'm never letting you out of my sight again."

Kissing her forehead, he walked to the chair in the corner of the room and fell asleep.

...

Angel woke an hour later. She was aware of a pounding in her head and a less than pleasurable ringing in her ears. For the moment, her vision was disoriented and fuzzy… she waited impatiently for it to go away.

After another minute, she sat up. Instantly her head rushed again and she moaned before lying back down.

"Angel," said a voice. She smiled as it said, "Don't sit up."

"Just figured that out," she replied. "What are you doing here?"

There was a bitter laugh. "Do you really need to ask that?" Angel was surprised to hear Luigi's voice was thick with grief. "I should've listened to you… you were right, and because I didn't listen, look what happened. Look what's happened each time I think you're safe—that **_we're _**safe. You end up getting hurt, you end up almost dying."

She blinked before the picture was fully in view. There wasn't much light in the room since it was night. Though Angel knew Luigi was there, she couldn't see him.

So Angel reached over and turned on the lamp before turning her head. She blinked another couple of times while her eyes adjusted to the light. Then she could make out the scene in front of her.

Luigi was sitting in the chair in the corner of her room. His head was in his hands. Angel couldn't see his face, but she knew the expression that would be on it. He didn't look at her when he noticed the light change.

"Luigi…" she started, but he just shook his head.

"It's my fault," he stated bluntly. "I put you in so much danger. I can't do that to you anymore."

"Then what do you propose we do about it?" Angel asked, cocking her head sideways. "Kill Bowser?"

There was a second bitter laugh. "He's too powerful for that," he muttered angrily. "But if it was possible… I would try. And I wouldn't stop until I made sure that he was dead—to return the favor of him burning you. To return the favor of his atrocious behavior to his son and minions. To return the favor for what he nearly did to all the Crew."

Angel was shocked hearing his tone of voice. It had taken on a maliciousness she'd never heard before. But that broke when next Luigi said, "And I would kill him to make sure you'd be able to live safely… with me… but that's not possible."

He stood up so suddenly, Angel nearly jumped. Luigi began pacing the room, his hands clasped behind his back. Angel watched helplessly as he stormed, his blue eyes losing all carelessness they once had.

It seemed that everything was unraveling right before her feet.

Ignoring the fact that she couldn't really sit up—much less walk—Angel rose and lowered her feet to the familiar cool floor. When Luigi didn't notice, she took a deep breath and pushed herself to standing position.

And she immediately came crashing to the floor.

"Stars, Angel!" Luigi shouted, rushing to her as she sat plainly on the floor.

"Ouch," she remarked mildly. Seeing that he wasn't catching her joking manner, she huffed once and said, "Oh, Luigi, I'm **_fine._** Stop freaking out."

"How can I not be worried about you after everything that's happened?" he asked, throwing his hands in the air. "If this is what happens just on the ship, can you imagine what would happen during a battle if the war begins again?"  
>Angel closed her eyes. She knew that it was possible for something worse to happen.<p>

"What should I do, then?" Angel whispered. Her words were soft because she could barely **_think, _**much less say, what she was about to. "Do you want me to go back Earth? I cannot even call it home anymore."

Luigi sighed, knowing that he most certainly did not want that. "All I want is for you to be safe," he replied quietly.

"I **_am _**safe," she mumbled, wrapping her arms around him. "I am safe when I'm with you. I feel safe… I'm happy. Isn't that what matters?" Angel closed her eyes, knowing what the response would be.

So she was more than surprised to hear him sigh and say, "Yes. I suppose it is." But then her shock diminished upon hearing, "If only it was so easy for you to be happy and safe at once. But now that you're with us, as a balance of the war… it's not meant to be."

"And if it's not," she murmured, "then being happy is the next best thing, isn't it? If you know I cannot be completely safe, then at least know that here on the ship, alongside the Crew—alongside you—I am happy. That means more to me, anyway."

Angel opened her eyes to realize that she was back on her bed. She didn't even feel him lift her up, her thoughts ran so deeply. Then, hearing nothing in response, she asked, "Does my happiness mean nothing to you?"

"It means the world to me."

"Then do not trouble yourself over what has happened. After all, we're here… alive, together. Isn't that what we wanted?" Angel smiled seeing his look of relief and exasperation as one.

"Yes, of course, but—"

"There's no 'but' about it," Angel said, cutting him off. "The past does not matter once it becomes the past. It's the future that we should be afraid of."

Luigi finally smiled at her words. He took one of her hands in his as he muttered, "You are so stubborn, do you know that?"

"You know I do," Angel grinned. She kept that smile for a couple moments before he began rising. She knew he was going back to his own cabin—Angel did not wish for him to leave. And so she asked, "Will you stay?"

Her question caught him off-guard. "What?"

"Will you stay," she repeated, color rising to her face. When she didn't receive an answer right away, she stammered, "I mean—you don't have to—it was stupid—"

Finally, he laughed and turned to face her. "It's not that I don't want to," he replied seriously. "It's just that I couldn't believe you asked."

"Why wouldn't I?" Angel questioned. More heat flooded her face hearing the breathless tone it had taken. _I'm such an idiot. I am __**such **__an idiot…_

Luckily for her, Luigi wasn't thinking along the same lines. With another smile, he nodded and sat down next to her, keeping her hand in his. Angel sighed once and struggled vainly to stop flushing, but of course that wouldn't happen.

That was when she heard another laugh. Angel listened, mortified, as he said, "Have you always blushed like that?"

"I—well—it's stupid, I can't control it—"

"I've never noticed," was all he said before kissing her forehead again. "I'll have to make note of that…"

Angel buried her face in her pillow so Luigi wouldn't see exactly how red she was becoming. All the same, she shook with embarrassment and laughter as she moaned, "Shut up! You're making it worse!"

"Really?" he asked amusedly. "I couldn't tell."

"Shut up!" repeated Angel with laughter, pulling another pillow on top of her head. She couldn't seem to stop laughing, much to her dismay. "You're going to be the death of me…"

"The feeling is mutual," Luigi murmured, smiling as he watched Angel keep her face hidden with the pillows. Once Angel stopped giggling—which took a bit, much to his amusement—he waited until she was asleep to close his own eyes.

...

The door slammed open.

Angel was brought out of the reverie of sleep, groaning at the unwelcome ray of sunlight on her face. She grabbed her pillow and threw it over her head. Something was different, though, as she moved—there was something beside her.

_Oh, _Angel answered herself. She forgot. Luigi was there with her. But if he was **_there… _**then who was at the door?

"Come on, you two!" exclaimed a familiar, raspy voice. "Up! Training in ten minutes, and you'll want to EAT!"

Luigi and Angel groaned, but Luigi told Boo to go screw himself whereas Angel just muttered, "No…"

"Hey! We're not taking 'no' for an answer!" he scolded right back. "Now hurry up, or I'll get Wario and Waluigi to rouse you instead! You have plenty more time for sleeping later." Seeing that this didn't worry them, Boo decided that the only way to get them up was to shock or anger them out.

"I said, UP! Sexy time's over, come on!"

"**_WHAT?!_**" Angel shrieked. She flew upwards, Luigi doing the same. "DID YOU JUST—" he started to shout, but Boo just snickered.

"Only way to get you up. Let's go!"

Giving the specter identical malicious scowls, they grudgingly got up and followed him to the dining hall. When they arrived, the rest of the Crew was already there.

When Boo galumphed towards the Crew, he exclaimed with pride, "I got them. It's not that hard, as soon as you start pulling the—OW!"

Luigi smirked and lowered his fist, his knuckles still steaming. "Bulls-eye," he muttered to Angel, making her grin.

Boo was not as amused. He rubbed his ghostly, translucent tail while glaring at Luigi and making very rude comments under his breath. "When you aren't looking for it, hoo hoo hoo hoo… you're going to **_get _**it…"

"I'm so frightened," Luigi replied blandly, making Angel's smile grow.

"You should be," Boo grumbled as an undertone. The back of his tail was still smoking somewhat.

The rest of breakfast was spent with Boo and Dry Bones plotting evil schemes for revenge upon Luigi and possibly, but not really, Angel. The latter two simply rolled their eyes at such shenanigans, knowing nothing would come out of it. The specters reserved their greatest pranks for Wario and Waluigi, and they wouldn't break tradition.

Another ten minutes later, the Crew staggered bleakly out of the dining hall. Angel could tell from the dimmed demeanors of her friends that training was no mild business. It was serious through and through.

Angel watched lifelessly as everyone walked out of the room. They were tired, angry, bored, or unprepared—in Wario's case, it was all four. Even Luigi seemed tired, and everyone else being tired made Angel sad for them.

The Crew stumbled up to one of the top decks, where Mario suggested they crowd around in a circle. Boo and Dry Bones pressed up annoyingly close to the Crew's leader, but a quick wolf-glare from said leader took care of **_that _**little problem.

"Now," he said, still glaring at the unabashed specters, "the first thing we're going to learn is defense. Lasers are something we've all gotten the hang of. I know this because I've seen it happen. But defense is necessary for battle. The shield is our basic method for that. It does what an ordinary shield does—protects you from attacks such as lasers or swords…"

Mario continued on like this for a little longer. Angel paid rapt attention to his words, knowing that how she performed here could determine either her life or death.

Before long, practical application was assigned. Angel and Toadette practiced together, trying to correct the other's mistakes and learn off their successes. It took a little while before they were able to conjure a satisfactory shield, and still there were weaknesses.

Of course, Toad wandered over to help his girlfriend and Angel.

After seeing Toadette's little smile to Toad, Angel realized that she was being the third wheel. She went to seek the company of others who were practicing—her eyes rested on Dry Bones, Jake, and Daisy. As she watched, Angel witnessed Dry Bones make a rude gesture to the sky after another failure. But Jake was already much farther ahead thanks to Daisy's guidance.

All the same, Angel joined Dry Bones, where together they attempted to better their performances. But as time grew on and her ghost partner managed to succeed, Angel was still struggling. She felt as if she was unable to produce a decent shield, not to mention very far behind everyone else. Only Peach helped her; everyone else was busy tutoring another newcomer.

Eventually, though, seeing Angel's increasing frustration, Luigi walked over to her. Quietly, he asked, "How's it going?" even though he'd been watching for a little while previously.

Angel gulped. She didn't want Luigi to know what a complete and utter failure she was. But she needed help. So, swallowing her pride, she replied honestly, "Awful. I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong."

"Your movements are too sudden," Luigi said calmly, taking her arm. "This is what you're doing…" he moved her arm in a sporadic jerk. "When you **_should _**be flowing from position to position." He guided her arm then, gliding it through the air.

She sighed, knowing he was right. But all she could bring herself to say was, "Oh. Thanks…"

Luigi knew what she was thinking. "It's okay," he mumbled in her ear. "Training takes a while. It takes practice. This is the first session. Don't expect perfection on your first go, love."

Angel allowed a small smile to form hearing this. "Of course. Thank you."

It was only these words that allowed Angel to keep her composure when the Crew moved on to a new tactic—the dual shield. It was a method that, if executed correctly, would shield both oneself and another person at once.

For once more, Angel struggled immensely while her comrades eventually managed a partial success… and then a whole one.

When Luigi next came over, she gasped. "Oh, no…" What little aquamarine shield she'd had flickered in the air and disappeared. "Oh!" Angel exclaimed disappointedly. "Stop watching me. It's nerve-wracking."

She heard a low laugh as he approached. "Need help?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Knowing that she more than needed it, Angel nodded. "Please?"

Now he smiled. At his request, Angel tried to summon a shield in front of herself and Toadette, who was also receiving help from Mario at the time. Though it was her best go—a satisfactory shield around herself with a few strong wisps of aquamarine around Toadette—she knew it wasn't enough.

"I'm doing everything you said earlier. I'm trying to flow smoothly," she shrugged helplessly. "What am I doing wrong?"

Luigi gave her a sympathetic smile. "This one is different. Though both moves are shields, the movements are different. You mixed them up—this is short and sudden, not smooth. At least, your arm that is extended to the other person should be short and sudden, whereas the shield you conjure to protect yourself should be the exact same as you've already accomplished."

With a sort of helpless smile, Angel shrugged her shoulders and slumped a bit. "You're making no sense. I guess I'm just not meant for fighting."

"You're wrong," Luigi retorted calmly. He walked toward her and put one hand on her left arm, the arm closer to Toadette. "Here…" He forced her arm to jerk sporadically forward before directing her other arm in front of Angel in a long, smooth glide.

Angel put her willpower into the shields and realized that it worked perfectly.

Stunned, she gaped slightly and gazed at Luigi. She knew that he had long since mastered all the battle tactics, but her shields let off an aura of power that she'd never felt before… except for in the Heavens, of course.

Luigi seemed to feel it too. He looked astonished. Then, placing a hand on her side, he asked lowly, "See? You **_are _**meant for fighting. Though I helped the movements, you put the energy behind those shields. You did that, not me. All you need to do is practice. Practice these tactics, and that aura of power you just displayed will be revealed to us every time. You can do it. You're meant to."

And with that, he walked off, leaving Angel flushed with pride. She couldn't help but feel her side buzzing from when he'd held her, and with a new renewed force, Angel mimicked how it felt when Luigi had controlled her movements—and to everyone's, and her own, immense surprise, another two perfect shields were conjured.

Three more hours were spent this way, with only a short break for lunch. At last, after dual shields, Heavenly shields, and aiming practice, the Crew went their own ways.

Everyone was exhausted—Yoshi dived headfirst into the ocean below to cool himself off. Boo and Toad quickly followed, leaving the others laughing.

Daisy sighed and said thoughtfully, "If this dress wasn't such a pain when it's wet, I would join them…"

Angel and Peach nodded, agreeing. Toadette and Birdo quickly jumped after their boyfriends, not caring since they didn't have to wear heavy gowns.

The three princesses groaned before departing, all muttering lowly about how they were going to take a shower. By the time they were finished, it was only an hour left until dinner, and everyone met up there. Afterwards, the Crew was much too tired for any partying—in fact, little Bowser Jr. went straight to bed after a half hour reading lesson with Angel.

The others followed his lead, knowing they had to get up early for training the following morning.

And thus the life of the Crew became.


	14. Chapter 13

"How's that?" asked Angel, proudly standing with her hands on her hips, staring down at the shattered remains of the clay target.

Luigi smiled at her, his blue eyes filled with impressment. Angel saw this and stood up a little straighter, feeling immensely satisfied that she hadn't messed up for once. But she felt like a burning light was in her heart when he replied, "The best I've seen all week, not to mention all day."

Angel glowed; Luigi saw it, smiled, and, though he wanted nothing more than to stay, walked off to those who actually **_needed _**help with aim. Angel was perhaps the one ace of the Crew—she never missed.

He looked back at Angel only to find that she had just hit the bulls-eye on another target. Within another five seconds, she exploded two more.

_Now, why isn't Angel teaching when it comes to aiming?, _he thought to himself, but with a shrug, Luigi just continued walking over to Boo, who was trying vainly for one of his old laughs.

Angel turned around to see the same thing—Boo was trying to explode a clay target over Waluigi's head. Though the prank worked, and Waluigi was doused in a shower of shards, Angel could see that Boo's and Dry Bones' laughter was rather forced. It bothered her…

The Crew had been training for three weeks now. It was officially the three month mark from when Angel had found herself on the cruise ship, and she felt a little upset knowing that her time was now half over. _But still,_ she told herself, _I'm going to stay. I promised them, and myself, that I would._

So Angel returned to glancing around the Crew. She noted that others were laughing at the specters' little joke, but they, too, did not look completely dedicated to the laugh. She saw the stress and tension behind each of their eyes. It was different, and Angel did not like the change that happened since they started training.

But said training was necessary.

Angel scowled and imploded another clay target with her laser. **_Why _**did it have to be necessary? The Crew wasn't its usual joking self lately. They were worried, uptight, tense. It wasn't them. It wasn't the Crew.

Knowing, however, that she couldn't do anything about it, Angel contented herself with taking her anger out on the rest of the clay targets. Another five minutes passed before she realized she'd destroyed every single one of them. With a sigh, she waved her hand. The clay shards flew up and formed targets again.

And so Angel simply continued with this routine.

Ten minutes later, the Crew moved back to defensive maneuvers. She'd long since mastered the regular and the dual shield, which left more difficult defensive maneuvers… meaning manual ones. Angel was one of the clumsiest people on the cruise ship, second only to Toadette and perhaps Blooper, who kept tripping over his own tentacles.

Aerial strategies were Angel's favorite simply because they didn't involve touching the ground. She was graceful in the air, a quality that did **_not _**show itself while she walked. So when fake lasers were shot at Angel while she was expected to dodge them on the ground, it was not surprising that she was further behind the majority of the Crew.

Mario was the one helping her with these. He was at her side often, making suggestions and gentle corrections. When she acted on said suggestions, he would praise her and tell her to continue practicing. He taught her the most basic dodges, such as ducking and running, leaping, and sliding. Once Angel had more or less perfected those, he took her on the intermediate level the rest of the Crew had advanced to a few days before.

And again, Angel had trouble with the ground level escapes. But with guidance from three mentors—Mario, Luigi, and Peach—she managed a satisfactory result in the end. And luckily, to make up for her abysmal defense on the ground, she achieved third best in aerials.

And training was concluded for another day.

This went on for another week, and Angel finally dared herself to truly open her eyes and look around at all her companions. She knew she couldn't remain blind forever…

She saw that the members of the Crew grew more tired and surly. Dry Bones never talked anymore without making a curt remark, and Wario and Waluigi never smiled anymore—not even evilly.

Peach and Daisy didn't have that carefree tone. Instead, it was prospective, and though previously Angel didn't feel like they were able to feel that way, it sounded genuine.

Mario and Luigi were still teaching, but they were worn out due to multiple examples on different topics and extra lessons for those who needed it—Angel and Toadette included.

Boo rarely smiled—Angel remembered when she had first met Boo and thought, _I wonder if he ever __**stops**__ smiling!_ Boo wasn't smiling now. Quite the contrary, he mainly frowned and scowled.

Yoshi and Birdo didn't talk much anymore—they were usually very quiet and didn't ask questions at the training sessions even if they had one. They just asked each other how to do it instead of ask Mario or Luigi for fear that they would explode.

Angel could see Toad and Toadette attempting to keep their spirits high, but she noticed that whenever they would try to be cheery for everyone else's sake, their voices would crack and they would falter with a glazed look in their eyes.

Bowser Jr., Hammer Bro, and Blooper spent the majority of their day training hard and fast, especially since they knew that Bowser and all the Ztars—seeing as the dragon king would've been only too glad to tell his masters about their treason—would be targeting them first. The trio would go to bed late after training, and force themselves to get up early in the morning so they could meet the official training session time.

Angel even noticed that she, herself, didn't smile nearly as much.

The fifth week of training came around, and Angel promised to at least try to lighten the Crew's spirits. Luckily, such an opportunity came around. Everyone had improved so much that they had excelled their training sessions, which meant the intermediate set was over, and the difficult version would soon begin. Afterwards would be the advanced.

But though undoubtedly no one felt like smiling, Angel was desperate to try.

After lunch, which was spent mostly in silence, she threw a napkin carelessly onto her plate. "You know," she said matter of factly, "we've been training a lot lately. Why don't we take a break? Those are healthy," she added with a nod. "We need something to get our spirits going, don't we."

This last was said more as a statement than a question.

There were a few small smiles passed around, and Toad and Toadette started grinning like normal. Only two people weren't smiling somewhat—Angel felt slightly defeated upon seeing that it was Luigi and Peach. A confused expression took them over instead.

"Take a break?" Peach echoed, almost with disbelief.

"That's right," Angel continued, vowing not to be overruled. Not when others were on her side. "A one or two day break from training. Let's sleep. Let's party. Let's take our minds off such dark matters. I know that training is important, but so is maintaining our sanity."

There was some laughter at this, and Wario and Waluigi clapped on the table. "Hear, hear!" they exclaimed. The ghosts soon followed suit.

Seeing that even Mario was smiling indulgently at Angel at this point, Luigi and Peach had no choice except to let this happen. But they knew what this could lead to.

The Crew might not want to resume training if they got a little "break." They might refuse to train again. It was true, everyone had advanced beyond their expectations—but nothing was more important than preparing for the oncoming war.

But again, they had been overruled.

The Crew was following Angel out of the dining hall, grinning and shouting triumphantly, glad that someone had finally said what they'd all been thinking.

...

Much to Luigi's and Peach's relief, the Crew reluctantly agreed to resume their training schedule from ten in the morning to six at night after two days. Though they had enjoyed their little taste of familiar freedom, they understood their leader's motives.

Another two weeks passed.

Spirits had dampened again—the brightness to everyone's eyes had worn off from their break about six training days afterward. Angel knew that she would not win another argument against Luigi and Peach again now that Star reports had been passed down to Mario and the others. Star reports saying more dark activity had been occurring, closer to the Kingdom of the Heavens each time.

The Crew trained more diligently than ever. In fact, the training sessions had actually been **_lengthened. _**Instead of nine hours long, they were eleven. From nine in the morning to eight at night with a half hour break for lunch and dinner; the Crew was dead on their feet.

Certain that she had to do something, Angel spent her free time thinking up schemes or pleads that would allow her friends a break, or at least a reason to lighten up. But her brain, along with her physical body, was exhausted, and nothing emerged from her thoughts, try as she might.

Because no one else was physically capable of coming up with ideas either, the Crew continued to steadily spiral into a state of nothing. It was a scary sight for Angel, especially when she compared them to how she first met them.

But one day, in the middle of their sixth week of training, Angel finally snapped.

Toadette had been swaying on her feet for a while, and Toad was yawning mightily with dark circles under his eyes. He was so tired himself he didn't notice his girlfriend nearly falling over.

Birdo and Yoshi were training together, focusing intently on the advanced set. But when neither of them knew what to do to summon the ship shield—a shield that protected the whole ship even if the spell-caster was far away—Birdo finally burst into frustrated tears. Peach rushed over to try and help, but she was too exhausted to perform the incantation properly.

Angel looked away from the scene. Her eyes rested on Boo and Dry Bones. Boo was a sickly transparent white. She could see the ocean sparkling **_through _**him. And when Dry Bones attempted to cast the ship-shield it took so much effort that he fell completely apart. His bones scattered across the deck.

Wario and Waluigi were both trying mightily, but they were so pale, Angel was convinced the magic would drain them before they would succeed.

Daisy tried to perform the spell, but she collapsed. Jake caught her in his arms, and Angel could hear him shout her name, patting her cheek gently as he tried to wake her up. She didn't.

Hammer Bro and Blooper had long since required a remedy from the Toad Doctors. Their efforts brought nothing except a bodily weakening. So little Bowser Jr. was training alone, but even he was struggling. When he attempted to cast the Radiance Laser—a laser that erupted from around the caster's body and spread outward, destroying all dark matter within a twenty foot radius—he passed out cold and hit the deck hard.

Angel gaped soundlessly as she shuffled toward him, tears stinging her eyes. He'd been pushing himself so hard, she knew. So hard.

She looked up. Mario and Luigi were paler than she'd ever have imagined. Mario was leaning on a railing as if fighting to remain awake. Luigi was leaning against a wall, but as she watched him, he caught her eyes. Angel quickly looked away so he wouldn't see her tears.

Angel tried to regain her breath, but far from doing so, her breath started coming in short gasps. She realized she was hyperventilating, but Angel couldn't stop.

All Angel knew was that she had to get away.

Angel got back to her feet and put a hand to her chest. She noticed Luigi was starting to walk towards her—no. She needed to be alone. At least for a while.

She bolted off around the corner, the tears previously stinging her eyes finally rolling freely down her cheeks. The members of the Crew who were present and conscious stared numbly after her, wondering vaguely where she was going before they truly realized Angel was running away.

It took five seconds, but Luigi finally regained his wits. "Angel!" he called, running after her. Though she had been trying to conceal it from him, Luigi knew she was crying.

But though she had heard his call, Angel did not turn around. She sprinted away, longing for a secret passageway that she could disappear in for a while. Eventually, she realized that while she had been blinded by tears, she had accidentally led herself into a corner.

She gasped, knowing that Luigi would catch up to her soon. As she wildly gazed around for any means of escape, she realized there was a very faint outline of a door creased into the wall behind her.

Desperate, Angel used magic to thrust the door open. She was relieved to see it led into a narrow corridor, which was dark inside. Pulling herself through the doorway, Angel closed it after her.

For a split second, Angel was sure she'd escaped. But then she remembered how Luigi knew the cruise ship better than anyone else, and just as well as Mario. It was quite likely he too knew about this passageway. It wasn't like she wanted to avoid Luigi as long as possible, but she wanted some time alone.

Lucky for her, he seemed to realize this. Because outside the door, Angel heard him murmur, "Just promise me you'll stay," before he walked off.

Angel smiled sadly, not bothering to wipe her cheeks now that she knew he wouldn't follow her inside. She dejectedly slumped against the wall. Her body cried out for relief, a short nap. Anything.

Deciding that she would **_not _**go back to training that day, Angel obliged. She let her drooping eyelids close entirely so she could drop off to sleep.

...

"Come on, Angel. It's been four hours already."

Angel's eyes snapped open. She was sure it had been only a couple minutes. Just a few—a short dozing. But when she looked past Luigi, who had arrived in the hallway with her, she saw the sunset over the horizon.

"Oh," she sighed, realizing that he was right. It had been four hours indeed. But stifling another yawn, all she added was, "I was sleeping."

Luigi smiled a bit. "Sorry. But I figured you would want to get something to eat…" he trailed off a little at her expression.

"I'm not hungry," Angel murmured.

"You have to eat something. You can't stay in here forever, you know," he added, attempting lightheartedness. It didn't work. Not for him, nor Angel. It was just a waste of breath.

Angel knew this. She heard the exhaustion in his voice. She hummed for a moment before musing mostly to herself, "Maybe we could **_both _**take a nap while we're in here… The Heavens knows you need one, Luigi. You've been doing much more than I have."

He shook his head. "That's not true. I've seen how hard you've been working." He paused for a second. And then—"I talked to Peach, to the Crew. We've agreed… to suspend the training for an undefined amount of time. We need to know when the war is so we can resume, but until then… we can take a bit of relaxing time. That can't hurt, can it?" he asked, smiling for real now.

A smile broke over Angel's face as well. "Did you really? Did she agree?" Angel asked in disbelief.

"She sure did," he replied consolingly, brushing back a piece of Angel's hair from in front of her eyes. "I think she was relieved, come to think of it. But… now that I'm at it, why did you run away, Angel?"

A sigh escaped her lips. She knew this question was coming, it was only a matter of time. But she answered it anyway. "I can't bear to see everyone in such shape. For the last few weeks, everyone has been in such a dismayed and exhausted state. They don't know what is good or bad anymore. They fight amongst themselves, and the only reason for it is because they're disappointed."

"Disappointed? With whom?"

"With themselves. They are disappointed with their performances in training, and even when they do well, everyone just sees the next concept as another obstacle. They feel over-pressured. They're pushing themselves so hard, they forget to be themselves. No one smiles. No one finds anything to be happy about. I'm happy whenever my friends are happy. Are they happy now? No. I hate it whenever something influences my friends, and in this case, it's pressure, self-consciousness, and disappointment. It's nothing I can fight against, which makes me angry and upset because I can't help."

Luigi heard the anger and dismay in Angel's voice as she spoke and realized that she was right. The stress had finally gotten to the Crew. It was a good thing, he thought, that they would be taking a break, because if they continued on… who knew what would happen.

"You're right," he replied, nodding. He stood up and added, "But we won't have to worry for a little while. Come on." Luigi outstretched his hand. "We can at least sleep somewhere that **_isn't _**a dusty old hallway. Besides, I heard there were spiders in here."

"**_Spiders?!_** Where?!" Angel exclaimed, her eyes jarring open. She practically flew into Luigi's arms as he restrained a laugh. He knew she had arachnophobia.

"Well, there's one. On your shoulder," he remarked mildly.

Angel shrieked. "GET IT OFF!"

"Just kidding."

She glared malevolently at him, one of her piercing blue eyes hiding behind her dark hair. "I hate you."

"No you don't," he contradicted. "I figured it would be the only way to get you out of here. Now come on. I'm going to get you something to eat, too. Otherwise your pride will not let you."

Angel looked highly affronted. "My pride? Please. I'm just not hungry."

Her stomach rumbled.

Angel slapped her hand to her forehead as Luigi laughed. "All right, all right. Fine. I'll grab a banana or something. But don't expect me to eat a five-course meal or anything."

"I think there are only three people who can actually manage a five-course dinner on this boat."

"Very true," Angel acknowledged, thinking with a small smile about Boo's, Yoshi's, and Dry Bones' abnormal ability to eat as much as they wanted without getting sick, not to mention without getting fat. It was an ability of which she was highly jealous.

Together, they exited the hallway and headed for the dining hall. Undoubtedly everyone else would be there, taking full advantage of no more training. It would most likely be cause for all-out celebration.

Angel couldn't keep back the smile on her face when she realized this. Though originally she'd thought the noise unnecessary, irritating, and highly rambunctious, she'd missed it more than she thought she would.

"Are you going to stay up late?" Luigi asked, raising an eyebrow. It was like he had read her mind.

She grinned. "Are **_you?_**"

"Only if you will."

"Then… yes. I think I **_will _**stay up late for once. I think it'd be well worth it," she added haughtily as he began to feign immense shock. But she found herself laughing too.

By this time, they had reached the dining hall. The rest of the Crew instantly beckoned the pair to sit next to them. Angel and Luigi exchanged grins before sitting down next to Birdo and Bowser Jr.

For a while, all was back to normal. Angel was relieved to see that everyone had reverted to their old self; everyone was laughing, playing pranks, demanding to hear the latest gossip…

But all good things must come to an end. And this time, it was ended by Toadsworth, who'd bustled into the dining hall. Immediately the Crew silenced themselves seeing the hurry he was in—there was a loose paper flying from his fist, his glasses were askew, and his purple vest was not buttoned correctly.

There was a silence before Toadsworth cleared his throat and said, "First Star just sent me a note saying that Dark spies have intercepted the information about Angelica being the balance of the war…" He gulped and then read:

"The Darkness has sent a Ztar General to come and kill her."

Everyone froze, hardly believing their ears.

"He will be here within ten minutes." Toadsworth swallowed uneasily and turned to Angel, who had frozen with shock. "I'm sorry, princess. But you had to know that."

Angel nodded numbly. She was grateful for being told. But she wasn't afraid… not for herself. For her friends—the Ztars were merciless. The Crew would protect her from the General's wrath, but he would cut them down if they got in his way. Which they would.

Luigi grabbed her hand. "Angel, we have to bring you away. We have to bring you back to Earth—don't you shake your head at me like that!" he shouted. That was exactly what Angel was doing; shaking her head.

"I'm not going anywhere. Leaving you for my safety? How do you think I will feel if I return simply to learn that you have all been murdered—**_murdered!_**—for the reason that you wouldn't tell this General where I was? Has our training these past two months been for nothing? No! I will fight him if I can," Angel retorted stubbornly. She wrestled her hand out of Luigi's grip, much to the Crew's astonishment.

Luigi slowly shook his head. "You can't stay here. This is a General, Angel! He'll be even more powerful than Bowser, and all our training strategies were to be if we were to face against **_him! _**I have to bring you away—remember that you are the balance of this war and that if you are killed, so is the side of the Stars? You cannot simply stay here because of worry!"

Angel shook her head numbly again. "I can't leave you. I can't." That was all she could bring herself to say.

Then Mario spoke up. "Luigi, she can stay close by. But I agree. She must be sent away. Just not so far that she has no idea of what's going on."

Desperate to simply send Angel away, his brother nodded. "Yes, that will be fine. Angel, you'll still be informed. You have to understand… you're too important to remain here as the target."

"I just wish I knew **_why _**I was important," sighed Angel, putting her head in her hands. Tears stung her eyes. "Must I be cursed to wait for the outcome of the battle? Am I to be sent away without knowing whether any of you shall live to see me again? Do not tell me that my destiny is to retain the legacy of this Crew as you once said, Luigi." Angel looked up with pained eyes. Luigi flinched as she whispered, "I could not bear it."

He grabbed her hands and replied lowly, "I wish I could say. But I can't." Hearing Angel's gasp, he said quickly, "I don't say I like it, but that's the truth. And you're right—more likely than not we shall fight. But you need to be safe. For all of us."

"For the Stars," added Peach, her eyes still wide.

Luigi jumped on the suggestion. "For the Stars. For the Crew." He gently lifted Angel's chin and forced her to look him in the eye. "For **_me._**"

After a few seconds, though she was still immensely pained, Angel nodded.

The Crew let out a collective sigh of relief. She would be all right, she would survive. There was still hope for the side of Light.

Mario turned to Toadsworth. "When was this note sent?"

Toadsworth pondered for a moment or two before answering, "I received it just minutes ago."

Realizing what little time they had, Luigi grabbed Angel's arm and pulled her across the room. He prayed he had enough time to get to the Heavens. "Come on! He'll be here any m—"

He didn't even get to finish his sentence. The Crew felt a sudden rumbling, and everyone was thrown off their feet to the floor. Outside, the waves were churning and frothing, pounding against the sides of the boat. The wind started screaming and the very walls of the cruise ship rattled—the glass windows shattered, and everyone could see splashes of water land on the deck.

Outside, the sky flashed with lightning, and an eerie sigh resonated through the air. All the color from the Crew's vision disappeared.

Toadette and Birdo cried out as the waves become more ferocious, as the sigh grew louder, as the color the Crew was used to drained to black and white.

And suddenly, it all stopped.

The wind and the waves were gone. The eerie sigh was gone. A dim silence filled the area. Color had not returned to their vision, but they felt a powerful aura pulsating just above the ship.

Luigi glanced at Angel, their faces white. "It's too late," he whispered. They stood up, and realizing what was about to happen, he pulled her into a tight embrace.

"I won't let you go," he said thickly, Angel's head resting on his shoulder. She wasn't afraid… she tried not to be afraid… she **_couldn't _**be afraid… "Stay close to me. Please. Please don't leave my side."

"I won't," Angel murmured, her words muffled from her cheek pressed into his shoulder. She barely remembered clasping her hands around his neck.

She felt her heart shake. Her nerves jumped. She could feel her pulse beating sporadically in her chest and heard it reverberating in her brain. Blood pounded through her veins, making her feel so frozen and yet so alive.

Mario was the first to step up. He glanced significantly back at his companions and stepped outside the door. Peach followed him. Then Daisy. And Jake. Yoshi. Birdo. Toadette. Toad. Bowser Jr. Hammer Bro. Blooper. Boo. Dry Bones. Wario. Waluigi.

And then Angel and Luigi were the only ones left in the dining hall.

Luigi gave her a look. She returned it.

With her legs feeling like lead, she and Luigi stepped outside.

The lightning had ceased flashing. Clouds covered the sun. Everything was black, white, and gray. Angel saw her comrades forming a solid, steady line. And each one of them was glaring up at something above them.

Angel dared to look up and saw the Ztar General.

It was the first time she'd ever seen a Ztar in its human form. He was terrifyingly beautiful with skin as pale as can be and robes of black surrounding him. His hair was half-silver, half-black, cleanly parted from color down the middle. The very **_figure _**of the Ztar leeched power. But the one thing that made Angel quiver was the fact that the General's eyes were a deep blood red.

It was the only color she could see.

The Ztar silently began perusing the Crew, inspecting each of their faces carefully. A small smirk was upon his face, and Angel knew that he was mentally noting which members of the Crew would be the most troublesome.

That was when the General reached her. His eyes flashed. His smirk grew wider. And that was when he said, in a perfectly clear and reverberating voice, "Angelica Claire…"

Angel flinched hearing this voice. Though it sounded smooth on the outside, underneath it was the sound of metal scraping against metal, a sound of two knives attacking the other. It was nothing like First Star's voice, which had been clear and comforting. **_This _**voice set her on edge, bringing fear instead of serenity.

"I've waited a long time for this," the General continued. His mouth hardly moved as he spoke. Angel watched him with horrid fascination. "My Master has informed me to your importance to the Stars. We find it, while you have so much power, a pity to kill you."

"Then why are you here?" Mario retorted, not letting the General speak.

The General looked amused. "To convey a message, of course. But before we get to that, you should know that any member of the Crew is always welcome to switch sides should he or she wish… from the regards of the Darkness."

Angel noticed that his s-consonants were drawn out, like a hiss.

There was a silence until Luigi said, one hand over Angel's, "You've relayed your message. You have no more business here."

The General smiled blankly. There was no emotion behind that smile. It was as thin as a single sheet of paper. Angel knew this was not the only reason the General had come.

"I also have another order from the Darkness… one in regards to Angelica Claire…" Suddenly, the General spoke in hisses and spits, screams of the throat and harsh sounds that Angel did not understand.

But Mario and Luigi obviously did. They both paled, and Luigi shielded Angel from complete sight of the General. "That will **_never _**happen!" he screamed.

The Ztar General laughed, throwing his head back. His silver hair glinted in the light, his black hair ominously sticking out from the gray sky, white clouds, silver ocean.

"What did he say?" Angel heard Toadette inquire plaintively. Her voice was tinged with a hint of fear, though Angel knew behind her tone there was much more. It was written on the mushroom gal's face.

Mario and Luigi shook their heads. They were still pale. Angel was startled to discover that Luigi was actually shaking, though whether it was of fright or anger she could not tell.

"Now, down to business…" the General hissed, baring his perfectly white teeth. Angel shuddered. Everything about this General was unnatural. He raised his pale hands—

Angel, Toadette, and Yoshi cried out with surprise as they found themselves rising up into the air. The very breeze had been stolen away; the air formed a large pavilion of black that hovered in midair. It was one hundred feet long on every side so that it was a perfect square.

Angel knew that this pavilion was meant to be a battleground.

She dared to glance down. The ship was fifty feet below her, and with another wave of the General's hands, the pavilion he had created began floating out over the ocean.

"It seems a pity…" the General cogitated with amusement, "to damage your ship… After all, it could be used as a Ztar stronghold in the future."

Mario looked infuriated. "That will never happen so long as one of us stands, alive and willing."

"Alive and willing," the Ztar repeated, seeming even more amused with this comment than he had been of his own. "The question is; after this battle, shall any—especially your precious Angelica Claire—be willing?"

Luigi again shielded Angel, but not before she caught a glimpse of the malevolent snarl he was displaying. The blue in his eyes sparked with fury and antagonism. She felt one of his hands twitch.

"What does he mean, Luigi?" Angel asked quietly. But before he could answer, there was a sudden jerk that tugged her away from him. With terror and resilience, Angel realized that she was being pulled towards the General.

For a moment, all she felt was fear. It overrode her completely for that split second, turning her vision red and causing her heart to stop.

But then she blinked and that moment passed. Indignation filled the fear's place. She frowned and focused her energy on snipping the black cord connecting Angel and the General so that she was free.

And that was exactly what happened. About halfway between Luigi and the General, the hold the Ztar had on her simply vanished. One could hear a snip in the air, and when Angel began rushing back to Luigi—who had been horrified, then relieved—the Crew cheered.

She was able to resist the Dark Magic of the Ztar.

The Ztar was not pleased with this, and he placed a shield upon himself before muttering, his voice vibrating from his power and his protection, "_You do not know what you have done._"

He fired his first laser at Mario, who blocked it easily.

The rest of the Crew retaliated. The Ztar General dodged all the lasers.

Luigi pulled Angel toward him and kissed her forehead. "No matter what happens, know that I love you."

Though she had just proved she could fight off Dark Magic, Angel knew from these words that things were still much worse than they seemed.


	15. Chapter 14

Along with the Ztar General's red eyes, Angel noted that the Crew's lasers had also retained their color. She knew it was because their lasers were built with the purpose of cutting through Dark Magic and Matter.

That was a small burst of inspiration as she shot her lasers at the Ztar General. But he was much too quick for her comrades to land many blows—at times, he was nothing more than a black blur whirling around the pavilion. Other times he would stand in one place yet conjure a shield so powerful the nearest Crew members would flinch at the aura of power.

But the lasers seemed to weaken him, even **_if _**they did not hit him. The light produced from the lasers was the natural enemy of the darkness the Ztar had inside him. If a laser got too close, he would flinch, providing a golden opportunity to shoot inside his defenses.

"Shields!" ordered Mario once the Ztar General spread a cloak of black over the Crew. But not their shields were powerful enough to keep them from being overwhelmed—the darkness swallowed them whole.

For a few scary moments, Angel was completely blinded by the darkness. She could not hear anything except the roar in her ears. She knew her friends were all attempting silence so the Ztar General could not find them.

But then a scream echoed through the sky.

Angel instinctively shot a laser, which cut through the dark matter. Inspired, she continued shooting more lasers. Eventually, the cloak over Angel began to burn, the edges of the black blanket singed. Angel emerged to see a couple others had already done the same.

Relieved, Angel's mind turned to the person who'd screamed. It had been a girl's scream. She glanced around wildly and saw Birdo staggering towards them, her hand to her head. Her forehead had a deep cut on it; the wound was gushing purple blood.

"Are you all right?" squeaked Angel, seeing her friend stumbling. She helped Birdo over, but Yoshi immediately took this duty.

Birdo nodded unsteadily. "Yes. I'll live. I'll keep fighting."

Just then, the shield of black disappeared entirely. It had vanished into a puff of smoke, and in the middle of where the darkness had just reigned stood the Ztar General, glaring murderously at the Crew.

Another moment passed, but then the General raised his hands again, and Peach shouted, "Scatter!" Everyone knew that meant to go in different directions and provide as either targets or attackers.

Angel knew better than to place herself as a target. Her dodging was the thing that was worst; since she never missed, she decided to become an attacker. It seemed Wario, Bowser Jr., and at least three others had the same idea.

Toad, Blooper, Toadette, Yoshi, and Daisy, being the five fastest of the crew, dodged, leaped, and ducked under the Ztar's black lasers until he figured out the trick. He then turned on the attackers and ignored the five targets, heading for the threats.

A black laser zoomed by Angel's face—if she hadn't trained, it would've seared her neck. As it was, it was all Angel could do to dodge and allow the laser to cut off an inch of her hair.

Frowning, muttered she, "There go one of my layers," before retaliating. Much to her satisfaction, her laser hit the General in the back of the head.

Soon, Angel got a feel for the Ztar's fighting style. He was tricky and powerful; his weapons included black lasers, the black shield that enveloped everyone and made them blind, black fire, poison, and invisibility. She learned that the Ztar was masterful with offense, but his defense was weak. Knowing that the Ztar was not invincible gave her a newfound hope.

Angel noticed that most of her friends had different tactics—and then she realized it was because they had picked out a fighting strategy.

Realizing how well her companions' individual fighting tactics were working for **_them, _**Angel knew it was time she picked up one of her own.

To accomplish this, she started comparing her skills against Peach's and Daisy's. She supposed that her aim was the best out of everybody's since everyone agreed on that. Her speed and power were admirable, but her advanced skillset was not nearly as varied as Peach's or Daisy's. Daisy was faster than she, and Peach knew more tricks than herself and Daisy, but if Angel's aim could couple with her power…

Angel grinned despite the battle raging around her. She knew what to do.

An aquamarine laser found its way to the Ztar General's stomach. She heard him groan saw and double over slightly, but it was enough. The Crew—Angel included—used this opportunity to shoot him as much and with as much power as they could afford. For five seconds, light surrounded him. And then…

Everyone was blasted back off their feet. The Ztar General had risen. Angel could see he was bleeding black blood from cuts on his neck, cheek, and arm. His black cloak was torn and shredded, revealing his pale arms.

The General hissed and spat in the same way he had earlier, though this time, Angel could understand him.

_"__I have underestimated you. But you cannot win. This will make your transformation sweeter than I could have imagined, Angelica Claire Evenesque."_

And he shot another laser towards her. Angel managed to conjure a shield to ward off the attack, but she was shaken. Not from the intensity of the attack, but at the General's words. She did not know what he meant by her "transformation," but it didn't sound good…

She had been distracted so badly, it was all Angel could do to yelp and roll to the side when the General launched straight towards her.

Angel kept rolling away from him—though she became dizzy, she somehow managed to get to her feet. _Have to keep moving, _she thought blankly, sprinting towards a number of Crew members. _Have to keep running._

For the second time, Angel was pulled back. She screamed and tried to whirl around to face the Dark Magic, to penetrate it, but couldn't. It took her another moment to realize that the reason she couldn't turn around was because the General had his arm around her waist.

Just then, a blue laser streaked past Angel's face. The grip on her waist disappeared. Angel—who was still somewhat dizzy—continued running in the Crew's direction.

Once she was alongside her friends, Angel turned to see if the General was still pursuing her. Luckily, he wasn't. Unluckily, he was now glaring bellicosely at Luigi, who'd shot his face. Angel saw black blood running down a long gash across the General's forehead.

A malevolent growl, which normally would've been lost in the sounds of battle, filled the air in the dead silence. The hair on the back of Angel's neck stood up hearing such an inhumane noise—the next thing she knew, the General was summoning his energy for another strike.

Angel gasped and tried to pull Luigi down. But she needn't have had to.

The General, instead of wasting such a powerful attack on someone who would've clearly evaded it, aimed instead for Toadette, who was recuperating after the last black shield. She'd already been wounded; her side was charred from a nasty burn. She didn't have the strength to leap out of the way—

Toadette fell to the ground, clearly unconscious. She was also pale, leaving Angel to form her own horrifying conclusions.

Before anyone of the Crew could get over their shock, the General had used more of his devilry to drag Toadette towards him. Angel vacantly noted the look of disgust on his face. The General snapped his fingers, and chains cascaded over Toadette's hands and feet.

Answering the Crew's looks of astonishment, the General muttered bitterly, "My Master wishes you alive. But believe me," he added, a grin upon his face, "if I had **_my _**way, you'd all be dead by the end of this."

And with that, he allowed himself to fire another dark laser straight to the middle of the Crew. Everyone scattered, and the attack dissipated into the sky. The battle resumed, and another black shield spread over everyone, blinding them once more.

Angel cried out with the sudden darkness. She felt vulnerable and exposed.

There was a tingling in the back of her neck—by pure instinct, Angel punched backward and heard a roar of anger. Her fist had collided with something; her hand was warm and sticky when she pulled it back. She sprinted off in any other direction, she was certain she had just hit the General, she needed to get **_away—_**

****And then the gray sky returned to her world. Angel blinked once or twice, her eyes adjusting to the sudden light. When she was able to see again, she noted that Jake and Yoshi were beside her, insistently firing their lasers. Toad and Boo were swerving in front of the General madly, trying to draw his fire so hopefully everyone else could get some good shots in. Before long, Blooper joined the target area.

But that wasn't the wisest move. Seeing that now he had three Crew members to aim for, the General bellowed and harnessed a great amount of energy in his palm. He shot it in the general direction of the three who were positioning themselves as targets.

Angel watched in fear as the black laser hurtled towards Toad—she swiftly raised her fist and concentrated, praying to the Stars for help.

The black comet stopped straight in its tracks. Everyone, including the Ztar General, stopped and stared as Angel screamed, trying to collect the energy to destroy it…

A better idea popped into her mind.

She moved her arm, and thus moved the comet… Slowly, she moved it away from Toad, who was still too shocked to move, away from the ship and Toadette, who was still unconscious, away from her friends. And toward the General.

With another pained scream she let loose her energy and mind. The comet hurtled toward the General, who was not expecting this amount of resilience.

The Ztar flew back forty feet. The Crew watched in astonishment as he sailed off the platform. They hoped to see him land in the ocean, but of course it would not be that easy.

Halfway towards the water, the General regained his senses. He threw his hands up to the sky; a black sphere of energy erupted around him. He glared mercilessly at Angel as he floated back up to the platform.

As he glided toward Angel, who could barely move, she could see the smirk on his face. He spoke again, and the familiar sound of suavity overlying knives entered her ears. "You've done well for yourself, Angelica. But you cannot defeat me. I have lived and trained for fifty-thousand years. You have trained for three months… Do you not see that to surrender is the wiser option for both you… and your friends?"

His voice was harshly enticing. Every word he spoke was, on the outside, a wondrous melody. But as it was with his voice, Angel knew that his words also contained a cruel substratum of lies.

"No," Angel hissed. She stood tall and refused to quiver beneath him. Up close, she could see the terrifying beauty of his sharp cheekbones and chin, the clarity of his red eyes. But she did not back down, no matter how fearsome he appeared. "I will not surrender. You are asking me if it is better to betray the ones who saved me, who love me, who have accepted me as family. I would not give it up unless I had no other choice. My death means nothing to me."

His hand snaked out and replaced a lock of dark hair behind Angel's ear. His skin was the temperature of ice. "But the death of those around you would affect you, would it not?"

Angel stared expressionlessly at him. "You yourself said your Master wishes the Crew alive. I have nothing to fear by refusing to give up. You do not frighten me."

The General merely smiled. "Oh, but I should. I'm familiar to you, whether you know it or not. Destiny has crossed our paths before, but in very different… circumstances."

These words frightened and interested Angel more than she cared to admit. She did not detect a lie... then again, he'd had fifty-thousand years to perfect that tactic. He was only trying to get under her skin.

"Don't believe me?" asked the General, drawing closer toward her. Angel finally allowed herself to step back—she glanced around to see how the others were taking this.

For the first time, she realized that the General had completely frozen them in place.

Her fear returned, greater than before.

The General smiled like a shark as he added, "I daresay I'll keep you in suspense, Angelica. But believe me when I say; we have met before, and I most certainly remember it better than you…"

He waved his hand, and the rest of the Crew gasped and fell. It was clear they hadn't been able to breathe during that exchange. For a while, they struggled to regain their breath—

But the General was not merciful in the slightest. As soon as they collapsed on the ground, he whirled around and shot another black laser towards Mario.

Luckily, Mario saw it coming. He rolled quickly out of the way and retaliated. The Ztar shielded it—out of the corner of his eye, he noted Blooper was having a hard time recovering from his imprisonment. He changed targets before his next laser was shot—

Blooper fell back down to the ground. Black blood, like squid ink, leaked out of his forehead, where a long gash had appeared. His eyes closed. The Crew all knew that he had just been knocked unconscious.

Without any hesitation, the Ztar General chained Blooper next to Toadette, both of whom were knocked out cold. After he finished this, the Crew was waiting with steely glares of determination.

And the battle resumed a third time.

The Crew returned to their previous battle positions. Jake stood next to Angel again, but this time, Luigi quickly joined them. He said nothing, but her close encounter with the Ztar General left him filled with anxiety. If the General tried to draw near her again, Luigi vowed to make sure he wouldn't walk away from it.

Meanwhile, the others were heatedly participating in the battle. Angel looked around to see Mario and Wario combining offensive forces; they would've caused significant damage had they been fighting Bowser. As it was, the Ztar General was not affected as much…

Yoshi was flying all over the place; his restless soul got the best of him, and soon he was hopping around wherever there was a lack of people. Toad was aiding him with the distraction, as was Daisy. They provided themselves as the targets and tried to keep the General's attention on them for as long as possible…

That was when Angel looked around the battlefield, and studied the General's tactics.

Her mind became a blur. _The Ztar's attacks… they're just powerful. They're not all that fast. In fact, his aim is terrible. I'd be more worried if he were going for Wario than me._ She knew Wario was about five feet to her left. _So all we need to do is keep dodging and fighting. The only problem is we'll all tire eventually, or perhaps he'll get lucky. That's why he's going for the weaker people first—they tire easier and it would only take a couple shots to finish them off._

As if on cue, Dry Bones was hit by a dark laser. Although he was fighting the void that could swallow him up, he managed one last sarcastic comment before the Ztar chained him up.

"Are you kidding me? This is **_bogus, _**as if you had any dexterity points to begin with. I'd bet you my grandmother can shoot better than you, man!"

Dry Bones was then chained up, though he did not look happy about it. Angel watched as he plopped down on the deck with a now awake Toadette. She could have sworn she heard him say, "What's up?"

Hours passed; long, tiresome hours. Angel spent them ducking and dodging, firing mercilessly, trying to help bring the Ztar General down. As time passed, Angel began to dimly realize that the enemy was steadily and more constantly aiming for **_her. _**Was it because she was tiring? Or because of something else?

Either way, Angel knew that she was the next target.

She was certain that trickery and brains was the only way to escape the General's tactic of brute force and strength. His technique was positively atrocious, but when he actually did manage to get a close shot, Angel could feel the aura of power even when it was two feet away.

Angel decided that the only way to convince the General that she was not as weak as she seemed would be to deal a tremendous blow… through the use of scheming. Oh, if only she could look inside Waluigi's brain, he was notorious for his knavery, the most so out of all the Crew except perhaps Dry Bones, who was unfortunately incapacitated.

This time, she'd have to come up with a plot on her own.

Within another few minutes, it came to her. She had to fake an injury, fake her own fall. That way the General would get close enough for a particularly painful blow to the face, if Angel's light would prove true. But how to make it look convincing, she didn't know. The laser would just zip past her, and everyone would see her trick…

The answer suddenly hit her in the face: _I have to let it hit my arm._

Angel was scared to enact her plan, but if she wanted to help the Crew defeat the General, she had no other choice. She needed to let it look like she was hurt.

Steeling herself for her plan, when the next laser came her way, Angel whirled to the side. She purposefully let her left arm take the damage; instantly it felt like it was burning in a vat of boiling acid rain. It was worse than Bowser's flames, it was pure agony in a laser of darkness. The scream that exited her mouth was no lie.

Angel fell to the ground, white lights dotting her vision. But she would **_not _**pass out. This was her plan. She would see it done.

"**_Angel!_**" cried Luigi. She recognized his voice, of course.

And though she wanted to respond, she restrained herself. The General was not close enough yet. He was not within range of her fists. She wanted to see the whites of his eyes before shooting.

It only took five seconds for the Ztar to approach. He bent over Angel triumphantly. A look of victory was glazed over his eyes, despite the fact that there were still thirteen perfectly good warriors standing against him. He knelt beside her.

"Ah, Angelica," sighed the General, almost sadly. Angel knew better, she knew what malice was underneath that façade. "It didn't have to end this way, my dear. It's a sad thing, isn't it, how you promised to stand strong. And yet, here you are, pinned beneath me… again."

"Again?" gasped Angel. Her resolve to not speak broke.

The General's smile became as pointed as a cat's. "Yes, **_again. _**You still don't remember me, do you? Perhaps it's time I told you. I was in this human form, but a simple spell changed the color of my hair, skin, and eyes…"

Angel blinked uncomprehendingly. She almost forgot her self-appointed mission. But as he leaned forward, her purpose was remembered, with more determination than ever.

He opened his mouth—

She fired upward, landing her fist against his nose. Blood appeared, and Angel rolled out from underneath the General. Since he was still shocked, he was still kneeling on the ground, and Angel seized her advantage to shoot him once, twice, again and again. Soon she was joined by the rest of the Crew. A rainbow of light consumed the place where the General used to be…

And then a wall of pure blackness pushed itself outward, propelling all the remaining Crew members backward. Angel only had time to lock eyes with Luigi before she was flying through the air. She landed painfully, from her knees first before collapsing upon the ground.

Before she could even gasp, the General was upon her again. This time, there was no false sweetness in his tone. Now he was snarling in a most inhumane way that terrified Angel to the marrow of her bone. "You little bitch," he growled. He lifted her by the neck and tossed her back another five feet. She landed on her back, the wind knocked out of her.

She was lifted again, this time by her waist. She groaned and tried to pry herself loose of the General's enclosing arms, but his strength was formidable and she was weak.

His breath was frigid against her neck—"And here I was, about to break the news nicely to you. Well, think of it this way, Angelica. Try and remember my voice without the Black Descent speaking through me. Perhaps you shall recall me then."

Angel, dizzy and not wishing to search her brain for long-lost memories, shook her head.

A white light crossed her vision again. A resounding slap sounded through the air.

Luigi bellowed out of rage, and he tried to sprint to the General. But the Ztar only had to raise his hand and send minions made of shadow Luigi's direction to divert his attention. Mario quickly joined him, but the demons were tough enough to cause both of them trouble.

The princess was dropped to the ground. Her vision swam with recollections of her past, almost against her will. She thought about the voices she could have identified the General's with, but her mind was so fuzzy…

"This'll jog your memory," spat the General.

Angel glanced up and gasped.

He was pointing a pistol at her head.

It took a moment for her to understand what he was doing with a gun. At first, it didn't compute. Why was he holding a man-made machine when he could shoot lasers out of his fists? How was she supposed to remember this Ztar by a gun, something he might never have known about?

And then it hit her.

Angel's mouth dropped open. "You."


	16. Chapter 15

"Yes, me," sighed the General, obviously pleased that she had finally figured it out. "Me. Me, the robber who stole your future. Me, the robber who was no mortal man, but was sent by the Darkness himself to direct your path towards us. It was **_me _**who made the pills on the hospital bedside appear. If you had swallowed them, you would've been transported straight to the Ztar stronghold, and believe me, Angelica Claire, it **_is _**a stronghold. But you didn't take them. You refused the pills, for some odd reason… And then you found your way to the Crew. But don't worry, Angelica," added the General, "You won't be here much longer."

"Get away from me," gasped Angel, scrambling madly backwards.

But the General was, of course, not going to allow her to move an inch. He stepped forcefully on her arm, and she cried out in pain.

"**_Angel!_**" called Luigi again, but he was still surrounded by the dark creatures summoned by the Ztar. Mario and the others were trying mightily to dispatch them.

The General lifted Angel by her waist again. She trembled out of rage and fear—"Let go of me!"

"No," murmured he, his red eyes gazing over her face. His left hand found her cheek and began trailing down to her neck, her shoulders, nearing her chest.

"Don't touch me!" screamed Angel, pounding on the Ztar's chest and kicking his knees. But this was all to no avail.

The reply was a chuckle. "Why?" he asked. His voice was a mere whisper. "It's not like anything I do is something I haven't done to you before. I know every detail that lies hidden underneath that dress; every curve, every blemish, every bit of you. You, of all people, should know that I know. And personally, I don't think that it matters that I already know every little piece of you. It's been three years since then, and—this is the only compliment you'll get while in this form—you were as beautiful inside as you were out."

Angel's eyes sparked with angry tears. Her dreams had been crushed by this General of the Darkness's army, an enemy, someone she had absolutely no love for. It was he who stole literally everything she could call hers away from her, he who ruined her and caused her pain.

"Let go," cried Angel, still punching his arms and chest. "Let **_go!_**" She began sobbing. "For God's sake, let **_go _**of me or I'll shoot you in the eye!"

The General laughed. His mouth neared her neck. "I don't think so. I don't think you'll be able to do that when your hands are tied behind your back. And they will be tied, Angelica, for as long as you remain in your mind… which, perhaps, will not be too long a time after—"

He was suddenly cut off from his words by a blue laser that pierced the back of his skull. Angel and the General alike were astounded. Both glanced back at Luigi, who was standing terrifyingly.

Angel had never seen such rage from him before. He was glowing blue, his aura was as strong as the General's. The snarl upon his face made her quail, even though it was not directed to her. The shade of electric blue his eyes had become made him appear all the more merciless.

He shot another laser—this one was embedded in the General's stomach. And another landed in his shoulder.

Before long, an avalanche of blue light descended upon the dark figure that held Angel captive. She was suddenly dropped, and her legs hit the ground before collapsing underneath her. She was too shaken to stand back up.

Minutes passed before the comets of blue light faded at last. When Angel finally peeked out from behind her arms, she saw that the General was gone, and Luigi was by her side now. His eyes had reverted back to normal, and they were filled with concern.

His hand hovered above her arm, as if he wished to comfort her but was not sure whether contact would be the best way to do it. Before long, he placed his hand over hers. "Angel…" Her name was a whisper.

Angel's tears had long since flowed over her cheeks. Some things were better left as secrets. What she had just discovered was one of those things.

Realizing this, she broke into a new wave of sobs. Her whole mind and body was repulsed from the General, from everything that was happening. The whole battle made her want to vomit; why had it had to happen now that everything was sorting itself back out, why did she have to be reminded of her past when it was long since gone?

Luigi's arms were around her now, trying to comfort her.

"It's all right—he won't come back tonight," he murmured, trying to soothe her.

But he was wrong.

A dark shadow slowly approached the Crew, all of whom were surrounding Angel and Luigi, guarding them and keeping an eye out for the General. They did not expect him to take the shape of darkness itself.

The General appeared inside the very circle, and he raised his fist towards Angel, his fist that was glowing black.

Just as the laser was released, someone jumped in Angel's way.

There was a soft groan, and the victim fell to the ground. The rest of the Crew, seeing the fall of their comrade, immediately proceeded in shooting more lasers at the General, as many as they could. A blinding rainbow of light emerged with those moments. Angel and Luigi turned away from the spectacle and tried to help the one who'd jumped in front of her.

It turned out, as unlikely and surprising as it was, that it was Waluigi.

"Hey," he grumbled as Angel started gasping and trying to help. "I'm a martyr. Don't ruin this for me."

Angel smiled weakly. "Why did you jump?" she whispered.

He tried to shrug and winced. "I don't know—something about you makes **_all _**of us want to protect you. I guess I was just the first to regain my senses, something I'll be bragging about for the rest of my life." He looked quite smug, and Angel laughed for real this time, noting the expression on his face as he glared pointedly at Boo.

"Here," said Luigi, holding out a hand. "Let's get you to stand up before—"

Too late. A black chain appeared around Waluigi's wrist. He scowled upon seeing it.

"Great. Because accessories are completely my style," muttered Waluigi. But he followed the length of the chain back down to the ship, where Toadette, Blooper, and Dry Bones were all waiting. The rest of the Crew followed him… the gray of the sky had relinquished its hold, and some of the blue was detectable.

"What does this mean?" asked Angel quietly. Luigi was walking beside her, his arm over her shoulders.

He looked around before responding, "It means the General is staying close by, but not close enough to attack. When he returns in the morning, the waves will start to crash again. I suspect we have tonight to rest and regain our strength."

Angel, knowing that time was limited, nodded and set off in search of a good place on the deck to lie down on. No one wanted to return to their cabins, not in the middle of the night when a Ztar General was nearby. They all thought it better to remain as a unit.

Before long, however, the princess was forced to recognize that sleep would not come easily. To take her mind off things, she moved to sit next to Toadette and the other captives, all of whom were struggling to break free of the black chains the Ztar General had enclosed around their wrists.

The rest of the warriors watched dully as their attempts failed. The chain always reappeared, or grew back, or wouldn't even break.

"Oh, it's hopeless," grumbled Toad at last, throwing down his chain. He had just severed it with a laser and conjured a shield around one broken end, but the other had still somehow managed to pierce through.

For the first time, the captives noticed the others were watching them.

Toadette frowned. "You all should be getting your sleep!"

"We can't find it," sighed Angel. She was exhausted, and she looked it, too; her eyes had dark circles, her face was pale. But despite how fatigued she was, what she said was true.

"Keep trying," ushered Dry Bones, uncharacteristically serious. "It'll find **_you_** eventually."

Toadette's eyes lit up. "You guys!" exclaimed she, looking at Blooper and Dry Bones and Waluigi. "We don't need our strength anymore… so how about we give it to the others tomorrow? Or we could try putting a sleeping spell on them—or we can try to shield them from here when the battle starts again…"

Mario smiled and replied, "Those sound like great ideas, Toadette. But I think the shields would take too much energy for you to conjure at this distance. Besides, the General might notice the impact you're making if you participate in the battle, and he might transport you to his stronghold straight away. Whilst you can't participate in the fight anymore, what you can help us do is regain our strength now… I'd suggest the sleeping spell."

The four captives nodded and raised their hands. Angel glanced around and saw her friends all fall into sleep, one by one. Before long, her own eyes began to close—beside her, she saw Luigi sleepily guarding her, making sure she would fall asleep before he did.

She smiled and placed her hand on top of his before lying down on the deck and allowing her eyes to close.

...

The spell had apparently been very good, because Angel did not wake to nightmares like she had suspected she would. Although she did not feel ready for battle, Angel felt somewhat rested.

She stretched when she woke up, wondering whether her eyes were deceiving her. The sky was a gloomy gray, and the sea was about the same color… It took a few moments for Angel to remember everything that had occurred the previous evening. When she finally recalled it all, she sighed and put her head in her hands.

"Why so down, sweet cheeks?" asked a dreary voice to her left.

Angel looked over to see Waluigi smiling grimly at her. There was an apple in his hand—now that she was watching, he tossed it her direction.

In explanation to her confused look, he said, "I managed to snag that for you. Eat it… you'll need your strength. And," he added quickly, seeing Angel about to respond, "Good luck. I don't know how you know the General, but I can tell it's not a pretty story. Be careful."

"I didn't know you cared so much, Waluigi," teased Angel lightly. She bit into the apple and smiled a little.

He offered her a twisted smile and looked around the rest of the Crew members that were already awake. He tossed them each a fruit too and told them to keep fighting, because if he was incapacitated then the least his comrades could do would be to hit the General upside the head **_for _**him.

The Crew spent a half hour waiting for the General to return. Every minute brought Angel anxiety. She didn't know if she would be able to fight the General after what had happened the previous night. The last thing she wanted to do was think about it…

The waves suddenly became harsher. Slowly, their strength increased until it seemed like the ship would capsize—sensing the cue, the remaining fighters used a spell to lift them onto the midair pavilion the General had created.

For a moment, all was silent. The Ztar was nowhere to be found just yet… but Angel felt the hair on the back of her neck tingle, and she intuitively screamed, "DUCK!"

No sooner had everyone hit the ground than a black laser shot over their heads.

Mario was the first to recover. He whirled around and shot a laser at the General, who was hovering a few feet away. The General quickly shielded the attack, and Angel yelped before having to dodge the red laser that came rebounding her way.

The Crew dispersed, ready for action. They formed a large circle except for Boo and Toad and Daisy, who offered themselves as targets.

But the General had learned his lesson about their position. He knew what function they were supposed to serve, and he apparently wasn't going to fall for the trick again. Instead of attempting to finish off the targets, he turned towards the more powerful players like Mario, Wario, and Bowser Jr.

Luckily, they were expecting this. Not one of the General's lasers scratched them, while the Crew was getting in more shots than the preceding day.

As the battle wore on, however, it soon became clear that some of the Crew members had not recovered. Boo and Toad, for instance, seemed more fatigued than the rest of their companions. It only took the General two hours to chain both up on the ship's deck.

That left the Crew with eleven.

Angel looked around at who was left: Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Jake, Yoshi, Birdo, Wario, Hammer Bro, Bowser Jr., and herself. But even as she watched, Birdo was rammed off to the side as a black column slammed into her. She sprawled on the ground a ways off, and even before Yoshi could run to her, black chains appeared around her ankles and wrists.

Ten.

More time wore on, and Angel noticed that the General seemed to be skirting around her today. What was his strategy? Was he leaving her alone because she seemed to be the piece that was uniting the Crew together, or was he saving his best attacks for her later on in the day?

Either way, Angel was afraid to know the answer. But she knew she couldn't dwell on it—the battle happening required her full attention.

"Shields!" barked Peach as the Ztar raised his hands. A poisonous rain began dripping down from the sky—the water was black and smelled of petroleum mixed with sulfur. The Crew raised their shields like Peach commanded, but the rain penetrated the shields anyway. Even Mario was grazed by the mixture…

Soon, it became terribly apparent what the rain did. Everything it touched, the rain burned through—the Crew's skin burned, leaving red blisters. Soon, those blisters began to turn dark, as if the rain alone was converting the Crew members into Ztars.

Angel knew she had to do something. Her friends were crying out in pain—she watched as Luigi sank to his knees, as Peach threw her arms up to cover her head. She looked around to see the General was headed towards her.

Without even knowing what she was doing, Angel began chanting. She didn't know what she was saying, she had no idea how it would help or why she had started in the first place. But as she chanted, it soon became apparent that she was reciting a spell…

The black rain disappeared, and the air shimmered and glowed. Suddenly, with a tremendous crash from above, a sheet of white rain glimmered down onto the Crew.

The blackness to their skin washed away, and the pain the burning welts had brought melted into nothingness.

Angel stared at the General, who was less than five feet away from her. She watched him apprehensively; she was surprised to see that he looked shocked.

"You **_have_** been chosen," murmured he, almost to himself. He looked around and lazily waved his hand. The Crew was suddenly preoccupied with thirty demons. "First Star has favored you, as have Fate and Light. You may have been given powerful gifts to fight against us, but that only makes you more important."

"And it makes me less susceptible to Dark Magic," retorted she evenly. "You may try to kill me, but if I am capable of magic of which I have no knowledge, I'm afraid your hands are quite full." She surprised herself with the confidence in her voice.

The General smiled wryly. "That's not exactly what I had in mind."

He slammed into her and wrapped an arm around her waist before using Dark Magic to speed up his flying. He waved his free hand, and suddenly a black vortex appeared fifty feet above the pavilion. He started to crouch, clearly getting ready to jump into that vortex—

Angel rammed her fist into the back of his neck and shot an aquamarine laser. He bellowed in pain and released her. She tumbled down from his grip and she began to roll out of the way, but of course she wasn't quick enough on the ground.

Again, he grabbed her. Angel noticed, with grim satisfaction, that black blood was dripping down his dark cloak and over his pale skin.

"You insufferable slut," he groaned, pulling her against him as he began to take off into the air. "Every blow you deal me is another scoop into the hole you're digging yourself."

"I will never stop attacking you," gasped Angel. His other hand was enclosed around her neck. "Until the day I die, every time I see your face I will shoot another laser, no matter how many feet into the ground I dig my grave."

The General laughed darkly. "You aren't going to be dying anytime soon, Angelica. That's something I can promise you. Your life will be spent with you by my side."

"Over my dead body!" she screamed, pounding on his back.

"Tsk, tsk," he muttered quietly. He dropped one hand down and began to harness his Dark Magic for another strike—but instead of driving it into Angel's skull, like she'd expected him to, he pointed it off somewhere in the distance. She followed the trajectory of his hand; her heart stopped.

He felt her sudden defeat and grinned. "You see? Things will go much smoother if you simply agree to what I say."

Angel froze, terrified that the General would release his laser and kill Luigi.

"Now," continued he, "You will wrap your arms around me and allow me to take off into the vortex."

Angel, unwilling to do so, only stood, shaking.

"You will do it," repeated he, his voice becoming dangerously smooth, "or your loved one will die this precise moment."

She launched her arms around his sides.

The General smiled. "Good. Now we're beginning to understand one another." He glanced off in the Crew's direction—there were still ten demons remaining, and Hammer Bro wasn't moving as he lay upon the ground.

"Ah," said the General pleasantly. He waved his hand again, and a black chain formed from thin air, pulling the defeated Crew member towards the ship. "How many of your friends are left, Angelica? I can count nine. Is that right?"

Slowly, she swallowed and nodded. "Nine left."

"Including yourself," added the General with mock sympathy. "I'm afraid the Crew will be left with eight before long."

Almost challengingly did Angel say, "I thought you weren't going to kill anyone else so long as I did what you said. Oh dear, I thought we were beginning to understand one another."

"Lying is not beneath me, Angelica Claire," said the General. But a grudging smile was upon his face. "At any rate, I was not lying. I will not kill your dear one so long as you simply agree to what I say."

"Well, I'm not disagreeing, am I?" asked Angel, hoping to keep him talking. Every moment she distracted the General in conversation was another moment Luigi and the others had to try and defeat the demons and free her from the General's grasp. She had to keep him distracted—

She heard a quiet laugh in her ear. "No, you are not, but I can tell you want to."

"How interesting. Just how do you know that?"

"I can feel you."

"Feel me," clarified Angel, being careful to keep her voice clear of all interest. "I'm afraid you've lost me."

The General's lips moved from beside her ear to her neck. Angel stiffened and tried not to lurch away; she bit her lip to prevent herself from spitting in his face. "I told you yesterday, Angelica. I know every little thing underneath that dress, I know what you feel like. I know how you feel when you are angry, and dear me, it's not hard to tell right now."

Angel said nothing. She glanced over to the others; five demons left. Luigi's eyes were locked on her, a look of horror over his face. Angel swallowed, her eyes wide.

She was jerked sharply back to reality when she felt the General's hands slide down her sides, towards her thighs. Angel began to shake out of fear; what if those last five demons were more powerful than their brethren, what if the General suddenly regained enough sense to take her into the vortex—

His teeth bit into her neck, and Angel closed her eyes, trying not to scream.

And then she was knocked to the ground.

Palpable relief consumed her entirely. She rose to see Luigi standing in front of her, shooting dozens of blue lasers at the General. She blinked, and suddenly Mario was accompanying him—after she rubbed her eyes to adjust to the light, Peach and Daisy stood next to them.

Angel wished she could collect herself so she could start to help, but she couldn't. Her arms were shaking, and her legs were numb. She hated that General, but he scared her just as much.

There was a hiss, and the Ztar momentarily disappeared. Luigi used this opportunity to dive down beside Angel. "Are you all right? You're not hurt? Stars, if I'd been faster—"

"I'm all right." Angel surprised herself with the steadiness in her voice. "I wasn't hurt."

Luigi looked at her dubiously. "Are you… sure?"

She pursed her lips, but said nothing. She made no gesture to indicate she was as fine as she sounded. He seemed to understand—she was just trying to be brave. She wasn't really fine.

Luigi rose and offered her a hand. Shakily, she took it. He helped her to stand, and everyone looked around. There were nine fighters left.

Just then, a chill filled the air. Angel opened her mouth to warn her friends—

Everyone was blown in opposite directions across the airborne pavilion. Angel flipped head over toes over head again until she realized she was tumbling towards the edge of the pavilion.

Angel somehow managed to grab the edge of the pavilion, but when she looked down, she saw that she was dangling over the churning waves. They looked like they were inviting her to drop… She knew that if she didn't pull herself up, the consequence was her death.


	17. Chapter 16

As she struggled to pull herself up, Angel heard Luigi and the others screaming her name. She looked around and noted with dread that he was too far away to run and help her. Angel needed to get out of this by herself.

But she was so tired… so weak.

She looked ahead and saw the General walking towards her. She whimpered and cried out, scrambling to get to her feet so she could run. Someone stepped to her and held out a hand. Angel couldn't see who it was through her own panic, but it was someone who glowed a bright burnt orange.

She was raised back to the pavilion. And then…

"You. Will not. Touch. My. Sister. AGAIN!" roared a voice that Angel usually recognized as innocent and childish. She blinked and stared at Bowser Jr.'s back. Was he challenging the Ztar by himself? How would he survive this encounter? He was a child facing a General.

She was suddenly reminded of just how powerful Bowser Jr. was when the General growled and shot a laser at him. But the little dragon only thrust a fist at the laser to make it rebound into the General's forehead. He followed the counterattack with an attack of his own, and a burnt orange laser soon embedded itself in the enemy's stomach.

Before long, a rain of orange light began hailing upon the General. Angel joined in; soon, aquamarine joined the orange. It took only a second for seven other colors to show.

And then the General, out from underneath the pure light, lunged out and enclosed his hand around Bowser Jr.'s throat.

Angel gasped and screamed as she shot the General's arm with her lasers. But his grip was too strong; she could see the light starting to leave Bowser Jr.'s eyes. It seemed no matter how many lasers she shot, the General would not let go.

Bowser Jr. met Angel's eyes as she screamed, frantically trying to free him. She grabbed the General's hand and tried to pry his fingers apart, to no avail. The avalanche of light blocked the enemy from view, but Angel knew that before long the General would retaliate, and she would be first in his way.

But she couldn't leave Bowser Jr.

"RUN!" shouted the little dragon, meeting her eyes. It was all he was able to say before he passed out. Angel didn't know if he was dead or unconscious.

Holding back tears, she sprinted away as he told her to. She wiped her eyes on her glove, and she could see that the gloves were not only stained by her tears, but by the blood of her companions. Or was it her own?

She turned to see Bowser Jr. chained up to the cruise ship. Hammer Bro and Blooper tripped over themselves trying to reach him.

Angel, knowing that she couldn't keep watching, turned her attention back to the battle. But the General had disappeared from sight again.

This next time, Angel wasn't able to detect his presence as quickly. Only when she heard a sickening _CRACK _resounding through the air did she realize he had returned.

Wario, beside her, cursed loudly and toppled to his side. Angel whirled around to be confronted by the enemy once more. As he reached out to grab her, she ducked and uppercut him in the chin.

Feeling momentarily successful, Angel laughed once. Feeling daring, she lunged out and slapped him in the cheek next. "That," she hissed, "was personal."

It took a moment before she realized he was lowly chuckling. For a moment, she was astounded. And then; "You have quite a spirit, Angelica. The Ztars will need that."

"You aren't getting anything from me," she spat, and then she dodged around the General before reaching Wario, desperate to try and heal him, to get him to rise again—

A black chain snaked around his ankle as she knelt. Angel, filled with rage, uncharacteristically cursed as he was transported to the ship by the General's magic. She didn't spare another glance at the captives; for a moment in time she was completely filled with fury.

Forgetting lasers, forgetting her training and her common sense, Angel rushed the General and began slapping and punching him wherever she could, wanting to cause him as much pain as she could. As she attacked, Angel knew she was screaming, but she didn't know exactly what.

It was only when her fists lit up with a white light that she realized it had been curses in the Ancient Language. She swung her first forward—

And that particular punch made the General skid back twenty feet.

As he was propelled backward, Angel straightened herself to be as tall as possible. She breathed heavily, unsurprised by the sweat running down her forehead. Behind her, the remaining members of the Crew pat her on the back and then moved to stand beside her.

The General did not look so impressed. He reached a hand out. Nothing happened.

Then Angel heard the whistle in the air, and she pushed both Luigi and Peach out of the way before diving herself. The cage missed capturing her by inches.

She gazed around wildly. Mario and Jake and Daisy had escaped as well. But Yoshi, who had been in the middle of the line, was stuck within the bars. Mario was furiously trying to break the dark matter the prison was made of, but the General only had to cover the cage in complete darkness to make Yoshi pass out. Then he was chained to the ship as well.

Six left.

The battle resumed. The General began pulling out more desperate attacks such as black holes, black cages, and columns of deadly energy. The Crew members escaped them all, and the sheer power of these attacks only seemed to be wearing out the General further.

Mario then managed to get a very good shot in at the General's heart… or where it should've been, thought Angel bitterly.

Furious, the Ztar bellowed, and Daisy was hit by a wall of black energy.

"Daisy!" Jake shouted. In fury, he ran up to the Ztar and punched it for all he was worth.

The Ztar staggered back, but Jake was already prepared to meet him. Again and again he hit the Ztar, and the enemy was so weak he did not have time to even think about a shield.

It was a beautiful thing to watch. Angel and Luigi looked at each other and nodded, and together they rushed up to help. Blue and aquamarine and orange reined across the sky while Peach and Mario tried to heal Daisy and get her back to the battle. But by then, it was too late. Her eyes were closed, and she was frighteningly pale, though she was still breathing.

Somehow, the General managed to wave his hand from underneath Jake's barrage of attacks. A length of black chain guided Daisy back to the ship. Then he used more of his knavery to produce holographic copies of himself, effectively confusing the other five as to which one was the real General.

A wind surrounded the five fighters, blowing them all towards the cruise ship. Angel planted her feet and tried not to be moved by it, but as its strength grew, she found her strategy was growing weaker.

She threw herself upon the ground, and shouted to Mario to do the same. When he received her message, he nodded and spread it—but Jake was too far away to see or hear the message, and at last he tumbled toward the ship only to be chained up like the majority of his companions.

Angel gasped and looked around. It was only her, Luigi, Mario, and Peach now.

Four.

But as Angel glanced back at the enemy, she realized that he was growing weak. She dared to look into his eyes and saw the exhaustion within them.

The next minutes that passed were lost to Angel. She fought almost absentmindedly, as if she were watching the battle from somewhere outside her body.

She was brought sharply back to reality when she realized she and the others were surrounding the General, who was on his knees.

For the first time in hours, the light and the darkness stopped. Though the Crew members stood, poised with their lasers, each wondered what to do. Take him prisoner and bring him to Light-Essence? Or end it then and there?

Mario seemed to come to a decision first. He lit up his fists, not bright enough to suggest a fatal blow, but one to knock out the General—

But Angel saw the look in the General's eyes.

"DUCK!" she screamed. A black fire erupted from the General. It spread swiftly out to the Crew members, and though she and Mario and Luigi had ducked in time, Peach had not been as lucky. The fire consumed her and transported her to the ship.

"**_No!_**" shouted Mario as she disappeared. He numbly looked to the ship's captives to see her sleeping peacefully next to Daisy. Black chain was around her wrists and ankles already.

The three stepped back as the General rose again. But he stumbled to upright himself, and he put a hand to his head before glaring intensely at them.

Out of rage, Mario shot consecutive lasers the Ztar's way. Angel lost count after ten—then she regained enough sense to help him. Luigi followed her; red, aquamarine, and blue.

It was then that the Ztar General played his most desperate card. When he shot a laser towards Angel, he used his dark magic to make it suddenly target Mario.

The brother wasn't expecting this, and Mario was hit in the heart. His eyes widened, and he raised his fists to retaliate before collapsing.

"No… NO!" shrieked Angel. She began to run towards him, she could hardly believe it… Mario was the **_leader _**of the Crew. Seeing him fall by the General's hand, she couldn't fathom it, it was unthinkable—

Too late she realized her mistake. She had completely let down her guard, and a black laser was coming her way.

Just before it could hit her, a silhouette appeared, as did a shield of blue.

The black laser crashed against the blue shield Luigi had conjured in front of Angel. There was a tremendous shaking as the sheer power of the laser began to crack the shield, and Luigi and the General were each slowly brought to their knees from the energy it took to persist—

A _CRACK _split the air; Angel felt two hands push her backwards.

Darkness spilled over the world, tinted with a shade of blue. It drowned the world in its entirety, and Angel couldn't breathe without feeling it filling her lungs and her head…

When light began to return to the world, Angel blinked to readjust. When she saw what was in front of her, she sobbed aloud and threw her hands to her mouth.

Luigi was sprawled upon the ground, deathly pale, eyes closed.

She was alone.

"No…" gasped she, her legs trembling. "Oh, Stars, no. LUIGI! No, **_no, _**please don't do this! Dear God, **_no…_**"

She began to cry, placing a hand against his cheek, removing her gloves to try and find a pulse on his wrist, not caring about the General—

**_The General._**

Angel's eyes flashed a frightening shade of ice. She glared up at the General, who was staggering towards her, preparing to take her through the black vortex he had created earlier to his fortress.

She began to shake out of rage. As if she would **_ever _**allow herself to be captured by the person who injured Luigi. She felt her entire body shake.

Without even realizing it, Angel began to rise. She was glowing aquamarine just as Bowser Jr. had glowed orange what seemed so long ago. She rose into the air, and the entire **_world_** began to shake. The water grew restless and crashed everywhere, yet the cruise ship remained unharmed. The sky changed from black and gray to aquamarine. So did the water.

Suddenly, everything turned from black and gray to aquamarine and shades of blue. The whole world turned aquamarine as Angel glared down at the Ztar, at the one who had threatened and injured her friends, who had broken her years before, who had destroyed her old life and was planning on doing the same with this one, who had harmed the people she loved.

Angel thrust out a hand and summoned the Ztar General into the air with her. She noticed that he struggled against her power, attempting to release himself from her control—Angel laughed. The laugh reverberated through the sky and rebounded to the earth from space.

Then her mouth opened. Angel was not in control of her own voice, she did not tell herself to say what next followed.

"**_You thought you could kill us,_**" thundered she. Angel didn't know it, but her eyes had turned aquamarine themselves, and they stared daggers at the General, whose own red eyes were widened in shock. "**_You underestimated me. You will never win, not when I am here. You have brought this upon yourself. And now you shall die._**"

The General didn't speak two words before Angel used her magic to plunge her hand straight through his chest. Her hand was drenched in blood as she withdrew his heart. The General fell to his knees, gasping.

"How is this… possible…" whispered he, gazing fearfully at Angel.

Angel laughed again. "**_You have brought it upon yourself,_**" repeated she. "**_I am chosen by Fate, Light, and First Star and have more power than you realize. Die now, knowing that you will not succeed. Not this day._**"

With that, Angel squeezed his heart until it was nothing but dust. The General began to choke and stutter before he fell onto the pavilion.

Angel began to lower down to the ground, this act consuming the vast majority of whatever energy she had had. Her right hand was stained with blood. When she lowered, she fell down next to Mario and Luigi. Her eyes found Luigi's face.

"Please," she panted, in control of herself once more. "Don't…"

Unable to finish her sentence, Angel's eyes closed and she was plunged into an icy wave of sleep.

...

It seemed to take an eternity for Angel to escape the murky black mass that had enclosed her, but at last she managed it.

When her eyes finally opened, Angel immediately recognized the Star Pad. It looked like she had been lowered down onto the ship after the battle had ended. Remembering what had occurred, she shot straight up and shouted, "Luigi!"

The rest of the Crew saw her wake, and though they tried to coax her back to sleep, Angel would not hear of it. She shuffled on her hands and knees in the direction of the Toad Doctors, who were undoubtedly leaning over Mario and Luigi… The Crew was only background noise to Angel. She did not hear their warnings of shock or despair.

Once she finally reached them, she looked down at Mario. It looked like he was asleep… There was color in his face and his chest was moving evenly to his breathing.

Knowing that he would be all right, Angel's spirits began to rise as she shuffled over to Luigi. Then those spirits sank.

He was pale, much paler than his brother. She could barely see him breathing, and his eyes fluttered even when closed, as if it was the only movement he was capable of. But what was worse was the visible patch of black steadily rising from his neck towards his chest and face… Angel knew it was the General's attack that had been **_intended _**for her.

Angel whirled on the Toad Doctors. "What's going on? Why isn't he healed?" Hearing nothing in response, she began to shake. Then she repeated; "**_Why isn't he healed?_**"

Finally, blue Toad Doctor stepped forward. "Angelica… I'm sorry, but we can't do anything to treat a wound of this caliber. I… I don't even know what the General **_did _**to him. I can't do anything. I'm sorry, princess."

Angel stared at the Doctor. Disbelieving, she began to shake her head.

"No," she whispered, gazing down at Luigi's face. "You healed me twice. You've saved Mario too… I thought magic could treat anything… How is the General's power…"

She began to cry silently, and she placed her hand against Luigi's face. He looked pale, but strangely peaceful. It tore Angel apart. She watched as his eyes fluttered once again before she heard him sigh deeply.

She waited for his breathing to continue. But it didn't.

Angel's mouth dropped open, and more tears welled up in her eyes. "No…" whispered she. "No, this isn't possible, no… Luigi—LUIGI! DAMN YOU, WAKE UP! NO!" Her shouts filled the ears of her companions, alerting them to what had happened…

Her friends drew closer to try and provide her some comfort, but Angel launched up and pushed away the sympathetic hands. Her fear turned to anger, another rage that made the ship quake and the waves churn restlessly.

She walked to the Star Pad and glared up at the night sky above. The moon, which she knew was the castle of Light-Essence, glimmered down at her. Angel remembered something First Star had said to her then; _"Long have we awaited your arrival. It has proved to be everything we hoped for. Strength from both within and without the Crew because of your efforts… such strength proves to be invaluable at a time like this."_

As her mind recollected this, her rage turned to First Star. He had said he was always watching and protecting the Crew, did he not? So where had he been the **_entire battle? _**Where had he been during the fight, when the Crew had been chained up one by one as captives? Why had he not been helping the Crew, when they were fighting for the Stars?

Thinking this, Angel couldn't help but scream at the sky, "You say we are so important! You say you protect us! And yet a battle has just passed that could've meant our destruction, and we fought it without you! **_Where were you?!_**"

Peach darted up to her friend and hissed, "Angel! Don't—"

"Get back, Peach!" interrupted Angel, still glaring up at the supposed moon. "Where were you when Toadette was chained? Where were you when everyone was captured by the General? Where were you when Mario was shot in the back, when Luigi took my death blow, when I faced down the General alone! **_AND DON'T PRETEND LIKE YOU DON'T KNOW WHO HE WAS! DON'T LIE AND SAY YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT HE DID TO ME! YOU KNEW! YOU ALWAYS KNEW! AND YOU LET IT HAPPEN! ARE YOU SO HIGH AND MIGHTY YOU DO NOT FIGHT WITH US?_**"

Angel paused to catch her breath. But she was so furious; she wasn't even close to done. "So my strength is so valuable?! WELL, **_LOOK WHAT WE'VE JUST DONE FOR YOU! AND LOOK WHAT IT'S COST! HAVE YOU NO SHAME, TWINKLING UP IN YOUR STUPID CASTLE?!_**"

In her uncontrollable fit of anger, Angel hardly realized she was glowing a blinding shade of aquamarine until the moon twinkled with that color light. She blinked once and turned to the Crew, all of whom were shading their eyes.

She took a deep breath and jumped over the railing, submerging herself in the midnight blue water below.

Bubbles surged around her like an avalanche. The noise of the waves cut off, a white noise filling Angel's ears instead. She looked around and realized she could see nothing further than a few feet away from her… It was then that Angel noticed two things: one, that her light had dimmed, and two, that her friends were all shouting for her to please come back.

There was a sudden surge of light in front of Angel, and she closed her eyes only to reopen them a second later. When she did, however, she thought herself to be in a strange, deluded dream.

It was First Star.

He did not speak, but he looked into Angel's eyes, and suddenly she heard him say, "_I am sorry for standing by, Angelica Claire. I do apologize for that. But it was the only way to be sure that the prophecy does indeed refer to you. And after seeing your strength then and now, I see it is true."_

Angel glared daggers at him. _"And the General? Was that your idea of a joke? You knew who he was."_

_ "__I did," _replied First Star. _"But believe me when I say, it was not my design, the enemy you would have to fight. It was a rather unfortunate choice made by my father."_

_ "__The Darkness."_

_ "__Yes, the Darkness. He is quite notorious for causing hatred and pain."_

_ "__I see that," _spat Angel. _"What do you want now? What more have you to take away from me?"_

First Star considered her sadly. He moved an arm out to brush back a floating piece of her hair behind her ear. "_Let us talk above. Your magic may allow you more time underwater, but that does not mean you do not have to breathe indefinitely."_

He waved his hand, and suddenly Angel and First Star were on board, behind the rest of the Crew, all of whom were frantically searching the water.

Seeing them and hearing their nervous clucking, First Star chuckled. "Do not worry," said he, causing everyone to whirl around in shock. "She is quite safe."

Angel crossed her arms and pouted, unsure if the word "safe" was his idea of a joke. She had never felt so exposed. Seeing Luigi on the ground again only increased that feeling.

Suddenly, all the fight went out of her. Angel dropped her arms and fell to her knees, noting the pale light shining on his already white face. She took her hands up to her eyes and wept, not forgiving of First Star and not allowing anyone else to attempt to comfort her.

"You say I am favored by Fate," choked Angel. "And yet here I am again."

"You are where again, my dear?" asked First Star quietly.

After taking a moment to collect herself and breathe, said Angel softly, "Here I am upon the ground, torn from a dream. The ground is no warmer or softer this time around. It seems cruel, to be favored by Fate, and to be brought this pain when I am doing my best to serve."

First Star knelt next to her and said quietly, "This has been a test, Angelica Claire. And you have passed."

"Because I killed the General?" asked Angel glumly.

He chuckled softly and raised her chin to look at him. "Hardly. You have passed because you have proved your strength through your bond with the Crew. You love them with all your heart… your love is a bond stronger than any power. You have summoned Ancient Magic through this love. And now that you have more than proven yourself…"

A golden light emitted from his hand; it enveloped the Crew in its entirety. Angel closed her eyes and breathed in, strengthened. She took a moment to adjust to the power surge—

There was a soft kiss upon her forehead. "Thank you."

Angel's eyes snapped open, but First Star had disappeared. But as she gazed around, she heard his voice in her head. _Be careful, Angelica Claire. There is much more you have yet to do…_

Then his voice was gone, and Angel's gaze flew downward. She was kneeling next to Luigi, who was still pale, but at least his eyes were fluttering open—

Then she was staring at the familiar shade of blue, like the sky.

Her mouth dropped open. "Good Lord in the Heavens," she murmured. Her hand, which was shaking violently, made its way to the side of his face.

"Hey," he said weakly, trying to smile.

Angel cried out and threw her arms around him, pulling him next to her. "Oh," she sobbed. "Oh, I thought you were dead, I thought I had lost you forever."

When Luigi next responded, his voice was muffled from his face in her hair as she clasped him tightly to her, but Angel still heard him clearer than ever. "Please, love, I've had paper cuts worse than this."

Angel laughed and laughed, unable to express her joy through any other way. She glanced up at the moon and smiled, tears of relief spiking her eyes. _Thank you, _she thought.

She knew First Star heard her.

...

The next afternoon, Angel finally awoke again.

After the Crew had gotten over their surprise of seeing Luigi alive and seeing Mario awake, everyone agreed that they all needed sleep. But Angel, who was still in shock, realized she wouldn't be able to rest.

Or so she thought, before Luigi calmed her down with stories of the Stars' greatest heroes. She'd fallen asleep beside him and woken up mid-afternoon to see him smiling at her.

"So she wakes," said Luigi, kissing her forehead. "But your fatigue is understandable. You must've been very angry to get your message across to First Star from such a distance."

Angel smirked. "Yes, I suppose so. Although ripping the General's heart out might also have been a contributing factor."

Luigi laughed, then smiled again. "So you killed the General. It must've taken a lot of power… tell me, how exactly did you do it again?"

She shrugged and told him about how the world shook and turned aquamarine. She told him what she felt compelled to say, what happened afterward. But when it came to how she felt seeing Luigi dying upon the ground, she swallowed and said, "And the rest you know."

He seemed to understand what she was saying. _I don't want to go through that again. _And so he nodded and responded, "Yes, the rest I know."

Angel sighed. "At least I'll never have to worry about the General again."

"You never will. And if by some skullduggery he **_does _**return, I will kick his ass."

Angel giggled and buried her face in his shoulder, very glad that it was all over, and, most of all, that Luigi was able to be beside her.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Angel and Luigi shot up just in case it was Wario or Waluigi, but there was no need to fear. It was Toadette who was outside the door, and luckily, Toadette respected privacy. But still, she shouted through the door, "Angel! And Luigi, probably. At least, I'm guessing he's in there. Anyway, the Party is about to start! Do you want to come?"

Angel raised an eyebrow and saw his smile, and then she replied, "Yes, we're coming!"

"Yay!" exclaimed Toadette, and then she bounced away.

Angel lethargically rose and stretched. She rubbed her eyes before exiting her room, waiting for Luigi before turning to go to the Star Pad… she stared at the magnificent shade of gold the sky was becoming—just then she felt herself being whirled around.

"What the—" started Angel, but she was cut off when Luigi kissed her and pulled her close. Shock filled Angel at first, but then she decided to roll with it. She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled, completely content.

Once they broke away, asked Angel, "What was the occasion?"

"The occasion was that I love you."

"Was it?" asked Angel. She received a nod in confirmation. "Well, then," replied she, smiling and lightly kissing him again. "Might I just reply that I love you as well?"

"You may," said he, smiling. He gestured to the sunset. "I'm glad to share this with you."

Angel laughed lightly. "Just as I am glad to share it with you."

And with that, they walked toward the Star Pad, where the rest of their friends would be waiting.


End file.
